The Phantom of the Trattoria
by Milligramme
Summary: AU The Trattoria Aldini is a rising restaurant in Paris. Unfortunately, part of its fame comes from a mysterious being that forces awful food down people's throats at night. Meanwhile, the cooking of a new aide called Megumi suddenly starts improving, but her dishes taste nothing like her. What exactly is happening in the Trattoria? And how will it affect everyone's life?
1. The Metamorphosis

Hi everyone! Welcome to my first fanfiction in English!

If you go to my profile, you'll see that I usually write in French, my first language. I don't know why I decided to write this one in English but it's too late to change so I hope you enjoy it!

Also, I'm still looking for a beta reader. For some reasons, I can't seem to find one. So if you're interested, feel free to contact me! I'd love to hear from you.

* * *

 **Chapter 1: The Metamorphosis**

 _ **Who is Megumi Tadokoro?**_

 _For the last two days, her name has been part of every conversation in the culinary world; Megumi Tadokoro, who until very recently was a nameless kitchen aide in the famous Trattoria Aldini, suddenly became a rising star as she managed to create and cook an incredible menu while the head chef, Takumi Aldini, reportedly had a small accident and could not attend to his duties that evening. Although the dishes had a more Japanese twist than usual, they were still far from exotic in this restaurant renowned for its surprising mix of influences, and we have to salute the amazing Jet Black Caccuccio._

 _Not much is known about the young aide. After attending a well-known cooking school, she arrived from Japan five month ago and has been working for the Trattoria ever since. According to her colleagues, her recent performance came as a complete surprise. "She is quite shy and easy to forget. Until now, she was merely doing her job. We never imagined she was such a great cook" reported a kitchen employee. We interviewed Isami Aldini, the co-owner and sommelier of the restaurant, who declared himself astonished. "Megumi is such a sweet and calm person, yet what she cooked yesterday was very daring and full of fire. I've always believed she had potential, but I never thought she could come up with such a menu."_

 _Unfortunately, we could not interview her to know more about her motivations and the secret of her amazing cuisine. It has been reported that chef Aldini would be back soon but one thing is for sure: whether it was a single spark of talent or the beginning of a great career, Megumi Tadokoro is a name to remember._

Takumi slowly put the newspaper down and stared intently at his brother on the other side of the table.

"So you spent the entire evening talking about this and now they write a whole article about her in the newspaper. What exactly happened in my kitchen yesterday?"

"I told you already Nii-chan" replied Isami (he never got tired of calling his brother that in any language). "I told the staff you couldn't work that day since you badly sprained your ankle and were still a bit high on the medication the nurse gave you. So we were ready to give up on the special menu or create one from older stuff when Megumi said she had an idea and came up with the menu we ended up serving."

Takumi did his best not to cringe when his brother mentioned the medication part and failed completely; the ability to hide his feelings had never been one of his strengths. Isami still had the decency not to laugh, which was a moment rare enough to be cherished. He remained silent for a while and then blurted out:

"I'm going today. And I want to taste what Megumi cooked yesterday."

"Are you sure? You could still rest for a day or two. We can manage."

"I won't leave the kitchen unless I'm dying. Or a little sick. I'm neither of those right now and I can still cook with or without my left ankle. So I'm going with you; and since it was so amazing, I'll have some of her food"

"Fine. But don't cry if it's better than your cooking."

"It hasn't happened since middle school!" he exclaimed. "Now let's go" he added before his sweet and loving brother could find examples to prove him wrong. "I have a menu to prepare."

He got up, grabbed his crutches and limped to the entrance, quickly followed by the other. Then, before leaving the small flat they shared, Takumi paused and asked in a thoughtful tone:

"Would you really say it was better than my cooking?"

Isami opened the door without answering. However, he could not repress a smile. Now _that_ was his Nii-chan.

.

 _Someone was following him. He could hear the steps right behind him, so faint he could easily miss them, which just worsened the situation. The night was cold and there were few people in the streets now that the restaurants of the area were all closed. He quickly went by the Trattoria Aldini and wondered if the rumors could be true after all. But no, these steps he heard must be his imagination anyways, he thought as he walked faster. But only because he was cold and in a hurry, obviously._

 _Actually, he was right. No one was following him. The real danger was in front of him and by the time he noticed, it was already too late. There was a shadow. A human shaped shadow with a white face, holding a pair of chopsticks that came dangerously close to his mouth. He tried to scream. That was a mistake._

 _After that, all went black. Or so he wished._

 _The taste of it. This_ thing _that he doubted was ever edible. It was so awful he could feel it ruthlessly destroying his sense of taste. And there was the vision too. Fishes everywhere, wriggling, struggling all around him. The feeling of their cold body on his naked skin, blended with a gooey mixture that was probably peanut butter and jam. Their disgusting taste now filled his mouth and there was nothing he could do against it._

 _He might have fallen at some point because when he opened his eyes, he was curled up on the ground. The street was deserted and he would have thought it was just a bad dream if it wasn't for the awful relents of the terrible thing he was forced to eat._

 _The rumors were true after all. The Phantom of the Trattoria had struck again._

 _._

Someone was yelling angrily at a very apologetic Megumi when the brothers arrived to the restaurant. They were still a few meters away when Takumi tried to intervene, but he soon realized that he couldn't go faster than he already was, which meant that he was stuck at the speed of a one-legged platypus. A particularly slow one, at that. Isami, on the other hand, was quick to react and asked the man what he wanted.

"This is unacceptable! When are you going to do something about this whole situation?!"

"What do you mean?"

"The Phantom of course! He attacked me just last night as I was walking home!"

Both brothers sighed. They had almost forgotten about that.

The Phantom started as an urban legend. The shadow of a dark caped man armed with a pair of chopsticks, lurking around the Trattoria at night and forcing awful mixtures down people's throats. They laughed at first. And somehow this whole ghost story gave them a new sort of glory. What other restaurant in Paris could claim they were haunted by a mostly harmless though very twisted ghost? Plus, he only focused on their worst clients, as well as aggressive or drunk people who sometimes came by, so no one really cared about it.

Of course people started to accuse them of playing these pranks; but the Phantom sometimes appeared during their working hours, at times when none of them could leave neither the kitchen nor the dining room. It always happened at night though, which contributed greatly to the "supernatural being" theory. Not that anyone in their right mind really bought that, but still…

Later, he started attacking people randomly. He even began to be more aggressive than usual when his victims struggled. But since nothing bad had ensued apart from some dreadful memories and a brand new definition for "disgusting", the police didn't care about that; and until a few days ago, the Aldini brothers thought they were right. Not anymore.

They were starting to lose clients. No one would have cared if a clear conscience was enough to avoid trouble; but knowing that anyone could have to swallow a random dish from Hell if they happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time… this was yet another story. It still wasn't much, but they couldn't afford to let the situation get worse.

As Isami tried to calm the man down, Takumi decided he'd better check on Megumi, who looked quite relieved to see them.

" _Takumi-san, you came! How is your ankle?_ " she asked in Japanese.

"Megumi, you know you won't make any progress if you keep speaking Japanese with us."

"Sorry…"

"It's fine" he brushed off with a smile. "And to answer your question, my ankle is not in a really good shape but it could be worse. It'll be better in a few weeks. What about you? I hope this man didn't bother you too much."

"Oh no, don't worry. I understand why he is angry."

"But it's no way to treat a woman. Or any person. It's not your fault he got attacked."

"He is still right. Maybe we should do something about it. It's always happening around here after all."

"There isn't much we can do, to be honest. The police won't take us seriously and as you know, each of our attempts to find him ourselves has failed."

They both fell silent, each of them dwelling upon their own problems.

However, they were soon interrupted by Isami who had dealt with the angry man and suggested they came inside.

"So," Takumi began as soon as they entered the restaurant. "I heard you did quite well during my absence yesterday."

"Oh, it wasn't much" Megumi answered with a halfhearted smile and a somehow uncomfortable expression.

"Don't be so humble." Isami intervened "Maybe we could have managed without you, but you really saved us a lot of trouble. I actually wonder how many people will ask for their meal to be cooked by you from now on."

Takumi huffed, looking away with an offended expression that made Isami laugh.

Megumi however didn't look convinced by his words. There was something off with her, the others thought. In the same situation, anyone would have looked at least happy or enthusiastic but not her. Isami wanted to ask if everything was fine, hoping to receive a more satisfactory answer than the day before. His brother was faster than him, and not as concerned as he was.

"By the way, would you let me try it?"

Megumi gave him a puzzled and somewhat surprised look as if she had snapped out of deep thoughts. He added:

"What you cooked yesterday. Unless you have a new idea you would like to try of course…"

"Sure. I think I'll go with something different. But the preparations for today…"

"Isami and I can take care of that as you cook, don't worry."

His brother nodded and Megumi went to the kitchen. The Aldinis exchanged a glance as she departed. She really acted in a strange way. Takumi put it on her unfortunate morning encounter and shrugged it off as he followed her, but Isami didn't. She had not been quite like herself lately and apparently, it had gotten worse since the day before.

It seemed that she didn't want to talk about it and he respected that. He simply hoped that she would soon be back to her old self, sweet and caring although shy and clumsy at times, or at least find it in herself to talk to them about her problems. Or to someone at least, though he knew she still had few people to turn to yet. She had arrived quite recently and was far from her family and friends. Even though she had received a warm welcome from everyone here, it was still a tough situation for her and he guessed that living in a small maid room above her working place was not the best either (although, by Paris standards, she was extremely lucky). Maybe that was the reason for her late change of attitude…

In the end, he decided not to give it too much thought as life had taught him that sometimes, the best thing to do is to wait and see. " _Attendre et espérer_ ", like the Count of Monte Cristo said.

"Isami," a voice came from the kitchen, "if you have time can you bring me the ingredients please? Especially those on the higher shelves…"

"Okay Nii-chan, I'm coming!"

.

Her dish was…daring. And impressive. Flamboyant, Takumi would say. Everything was balanced in the most unexpected ways and all in all, it was an extremely surprising experience. But most importantly, it was nothing like the person who cooked it. Megumi was lots of things but she was definitely neither daring nor flamboyant, yet this dish revealed a burning passion he never imagined she had in her. Of course he knew she was passionate about cooking, but in a different, calmer way. And her dormant potential was no secret either (except maybe for herself); he would never have hired her otherwise. But this…this was not Megumi.

It was closer to his own cooking in some aspects, and perhaps this was the only reason behind this. She'd had some time to learn from him after all. But somehow, that did not add up. He could taste some mystery here and the more ate, the more he wanted to find out what it was.

Nevertheless, however odd this was, there was one thing Takumi knew for sure: this dish was extremely good. Tasty, balanced, harmonious… He had refused to believe it earlier but now he had to admit it: it could definitely rival his own cooking. It wasn't better of course… Probably… But still.

"Wow Megumi, I'm impressed. How long have you planned to hide this from us?"

"I guess I just gained confidence."

"I'm glad to hear that. But honestly, this is good enough to be on today's menu."

"Are you sure?"

"Of course. There is still another main dish to prepare so I'll take care of that. Let's see whose is the most popular today!"

There was fire in his eyes as he said that and Megumi shrunk a little. She seemed uncomfortable with the whole thing but he did not even realize it. Takumi was already lost in a world of his own. There was a challenge here and he was ready to face it! He could not lose in his own restaurant!


	2. The Phantom Menace

Hi everyone! I'm back with a new chapter!

Also, I'd like to let you know that I am not a fast writer. I have a comfortable number of chapters already written and I'd like to keep it that way, in case I can't write for a while or something (and so that you don't have like 2 chapters a week at the beginning and then one every two months… I know how frustrating it can be). So for now, I'm planning to publish a chapter every two weeks or so. I'll make sure to tell you if I decide to go slower or faster at some point.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy this one!

* * *

 **Chapter 2: The Phantom Menace**

This silly and entirely one-sided rivalry between Takumi and Megumi had all started with a ridiculous incident and whenever he thought about it, Isami wondered if he really had to thank banana chips for it all or if it was bound to happen sooner or later. In any case, he was grateful for it, now that he saw the unexpected results this unfortunate event had.

 _Takumi and he were walking back home when the former slipped on something on the ground, which was later revealed to be a banana chips wrapping. His ankle didn't seem too bad at the time and though his brother limped a bit on the rest of the way, he still assured him that he was perfectly fine and would simply walk it off. Isami didn't insist and retrospectively, he really wished he had. At least he would have had a peaceful night and time to prepare for what was to come…_

 _He was woken up at four in the morning by a very distressed brother who could not even move from his bed. His ankle had tripled in volume and Takumi winced at a simple brush. Not that he was particularly tough to begin with of course, but it was another story. Taking him to the hospital had been a whole adventure and obviously, the emergency personal was not so pleased to see them. There were way more people than they expected and a very tired nurse confused him with another patient and gave him a painkiller. Neither of them were in a position to tell that it was probably a mistake and the blonde took it obediently._

 _They waited for a doctor in a too brightly lit room for what seemed like a small eternity and when she finally arrived, Takumi was so high that Isami had to silence him and explain everything for him. He knew his brother was sensitive to drugs, but this time was even worse. The blonde reached new heights when he tried to explain to the doctor with a very thick Italian accent he usually didn't have that his ankle had a nasty sour taste and should be sweetened, maybe with brown sugar or a very mild honey. At least it made her smile a bit…_

" _My grandmother would have probably done that. She used honey for everything" she said quietly, looking so exhausted it should have been illegal._

" _Ours preferred vinegar" Isami replied in a sleepy tone, letting his mind wander to his_ nonna _and the family that was waiting for them in Italy._

 _The results were clear: Takumi's ankle was sprained, so he had to wear a splint for a couple of days and not overwork it. Ideally he would stay at home for a short while. Isami gave him a worried look, but his brother barely muttered a small "whatever" and seemed to accept the situation without even trying to argue. That worried him even more. He hoped it was because the other was both too drugged and too tired to process the implications of it, but even when he tried to explain the situation and what it meant later on, Takumi's only reaction was to ask him if he would be alright working with so little sleep._

 _Isami remembered a time when his brother would have refused to leave the kitchen even with two broken legs and a dislocated shoulder. He was so bitter whenever he got sick, not to speak about that time he kept cooking with a broken finger…_

 _Of course, he was glad he didn't have to tie Takumi down to his bed to prevent him from going to work no matter what. But what his complete lack of resistance implied was another proof of that sad reality that neither of them had wanted to acknowledge until now: his brother was slowly losing his passion for cooking._

 _What he lacked was a challenge, Isami knew that; but there was nothing he could do to help. He had chosen to give up on cooking a while ago and focus on studying oenology instead. It had seemed like a natural thing to do to support his brother in his own way and honestly, he loved it and was better at it than he ever was at cooking – which was saying something. Naturally, he was still able to help in the kitchen when needed, but he could not become a serious threat to his brother anymore. Not that he ever could but… Anyway._

 _The problem was that Takumi was bored and Isami worried a lot about what would happen if he lost his interest in cooking completely. It was not like he had anything else. Cooking had been his whole life until now. He had never thought of it as something sad but what would be left if he lost this one thing?_

 _When he left his brother home that morning, Isami was pretty worried. And exhausted. Not to mention stressed out. Maybe they could go without a daily special menu and he could help in the kitchen to make up for the absence of one cook, but that was still a lot of work and he was not sure Megumi could handle the pressure. She was not so good at stress management and felt easily overwhelmed._

 _On the way he decided to call Zenji Marui, the other cook, who thankfully accepted to change his day off for this once. Then he had to explain the situation to Megumi and instead of panicking or at least looking apprehensive – although still relieved not to be on her own – she replied calmly:_

" _You know, Isami-san… if it's fine by you and Marui-kun… I think we can still have a special menu today."_

 _That was surprising coming from her but he had never seen her so confident and decided it was worth giving her a chance._

It had the consequences everyone knew and Isami was really glad he took that decision. Two weeks later, his brother was once again all fired up – maybe a bit too much for everyone's liking – and the sommelier knew he would never give up until he was absolutely certain of his complete superiority. Hopefully it would last for a while, although Megumi didn't really seem to enjoy the whole situation. Being the peaceful person he knew, this was not too surprising.

What was, however, was the fact that her strange behavior of the past few weeks seemed to get worse day after day. Maybe he should ask Takumi to calm down a bit on the whole rivalry thing? Unless the real problem was the Phantom issue, which was getting even worse these days. His brother was too focused on beating Megumi in his cooking challenges to care, so it became more of his own problem and he really had no idea what to do about it anymore.

Fortunately for him, he was not completely alone. Satoshi Isshiki, his head waiter, was also doing his best to help. However, it was hard to really believe him when he claimed that he saw the Phantom in the restaurant and he was apparently living there.

Everyone knew Satoshi had the strange habit of wandering in the restaurant's attic sometimes. They had no idea why he would do that or what kind of pleasure he found in it but they stopped questioning his weird habits a long time ago. (Also, he was usually doing that half naked so no one really wanted to disturb him while he was in there…)

Even before the Phantom legend started, he said he sometimes heard strange noises in the attic while he was there. Quick steps, like someone trying to run away as silently as they could on the creaking floor. Then one day, soon after the attacks began, he came back from his usual roof errands and assured everyone that he saw a dark man with fiery hair. He was dressed in a black coat and had a white expressionless face with pitch black eyes. He apparently ran away as he saw him.

The legend of the Phantom really started there and even if Satoshi was a reliable employee, Isami was slowly realizing that he didn't trust him entirely. There were too many mysteries around the man. It was very easy to forget given his lively, wacky behavior, and he was always able to brush off any question with a bright smile. But the more Isami thought about it, the more he realized there were too many things he didn't know and could not explain about him. The attic wandering wasn't even the weirdest part of his character!

No one could explain why he was working as a full time waiter despite being a very talented chef himself. Nor why he politely declined every offer from other restaurants. No matter how high the salary or how good the position, he just seemed very happy with his life here and decided he would stay. No one knew what his motivations were. Maybe he had a tragic or dangerous past to hide. Maybe he was seeking revenge somehow. For all Isami knew, he could even be a spy for some secret organization and the Trattoria happened to be the perfect location for him. That would explain the roof wandering…

In the end, there were too many questions and way too many potential answers. The possibilities were almost endless.

A few months ago, Isami would have brushed it off in the blink of an eye. He was glad to have such a valuable employee and was ready to accept any of his harmless oddities. But now, he was slowly realizing how little he knew about his own head waiter and the situation was starting to bother him. It made him feel like he could not trust him, which was extremely troublesome since he was the only one he could turn to for help, now that his brother had dropped the issue completely. Megumi had her own problems, Zenji was doing very important researches that took most of his free time and the other employees were all more or less in the same situation. Man did he feel lonely…

.

"I'd like to speak to the owner" declared a young woman with bright pink hair and a very determined look as she entered the Trattoria a few hours before it opened to customers.

She did not look pleased at all and Satoshi sighed internally as he put on his brightest smile. That was a recurring phrase these days despite the ever increasing quality of their food. That Phantom was really becoming a huge issue. If only this mysterious being could calm down a bit and go back to his usual wandering in the attic…

"I think they are both busy right now. Maybe you can talk to me first?"

"And be sure to tell them I come on behalf of Erina Nakiri" she added without listening.

The name was dropped like a big and heavy stone in a deep pond. Fortunately, the pond that was Satoshi's mind was a particularly cold one and the surface froze again before anyone could notice it was ever disturbed. However, this didn't mean it hadn't caused any turmoil bellow the perfectly smooth and shiny surface.

"Of course Miss. I'll see if I can find one of them. If you don't mind waiting, I will be back in a minute" he replied as he left to see if he could find one of the Aldinis.

Erina Nariki… The most fearsome food critique in the entire culinary world. Her name alone was enough to send shivers even to the best and most praised chefs worldwide. Now that he thought about it, the head waiter realized he should have recognized Hisako Arato, her faithful secretary. Pink hair was not so common, even these days. What were they doing in Paris? And most importantly, why did they have to come now? Satoshi had a very bad feeling about it.

As he entered the kitchen, he could only find Takumi, who had by now fully recovered from his injury and was finishing the food preparation.

"Miss Arato is here and would like to speak to you on behalf of Miss Nakiri. Shall I get Isami first?"

"No, it's fine. He is busy in the cellar and I was done anyways" Takumi answered as he wiped his hands. "Megumi, can you handle the rest please? I don't think I'll be long."

"Y-Yes! I'll be fine!" she answered in a shaking voice.

If the blond chef seemed to take the news quite calmly, it was not the case of the easily impressed aide who suddenly looked totally terrified. As his young boss left the room to talk to the newcomer, she had resumed her old habit of drawing the kanji for "man" in her palm. Thinking about it, it had been a while since the last time Satoshi saw her do that. He walked to her and put a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

As he tried to calm her down, Takumi was dealing with the very unpleasant feeling of reality hitting him like concrete after a free fall from the top of a Dubai skyscraper. It was harsh. And painful. And somehow, surviving it only seemed to make matters worse because he still had to take it like everything was fine and every metaphoric bone in his mind wasn't completely shattered. The first part of her speech had been fine though, he had to admit it.

"Miss Nakiri will be coming here anytime next week. She has to pay a courtesy visit to her cousin's restaurant that recently opened in the neighborhood, and would like to take this opportunity to try your food."

Yep, nothing wrong with that. Glad to hear it.

"She's been planning to come to the Trattoria Aldini for a long time, since this place seems to have a high reputation around here."

He already knew about the increasing fame of the Trattoria of course, but getting this information directly from Nakiri's secretary felt extremely nice.

A bit like falling and flying sometimes feel the same in certain situations.

"However, I've heard about this whole 'Phantom'issue and I don't think it's safe for her to come here."

But this feeling only lasts until you see the ground coming dangerously close.

"As you know, she has the most sensitive palate in the world. If she was to be attacked and fed disgusting food like the rumors say, I don't think she would survive it. And in any case, that's not a risk I'm willing to take."

And now here he was, broken pieces on the ground. He did not move at all, too taken aback to react in any way. Now he remembered. The Phantom, true. He had been too much into his cooking to think about it but he was still there. Doing his Phantom stuff and all.

"If you don't take the appropriate measures I will do everything in my power to prevent her from coming. And if she still decides to come and gets attacked, I will consider it to be your personal responsibility. In which case you can consider your whole career and the one of everyone in this pitiful restaurant to be over. Is that clear?"

It was only at this moment that Takumi realized he had stopped breathing entirely. But he still had to do that, he remembered. Breathing was something living people did and no matter how dead he felt inside, he was still too alive to go without it.

"This is understood, Miss Arato-san" he finally managed to utter, letting the Japanese particle slip as naturally as metaphoric blood was leaving his metaphoric broken body. Or as irrepressibly as real blood was leaving his real face. "We will do our best to stop the Phantom before Nakiri-san comes here or at least make sure she can come and leave safely. Actually, no one has ever been attacked by day so it should be entirely safe for her to come for lunch."

"I hope so. Your customer's safety should be your highest priority, _Mister_ Aldini- _san_ " she sneered. "And by the way," she added in a scornful tone before leaving "the decoration of this place looks terribly cheap. I really hope you have better tastes in food."

That was the final strike. Takumi, however, did not react at all. He still stood tall in the dining room, not moving one bit. He thought he would feel more offended by Arato's last remark. It was, after all, the decoration he chose with his brother when they decided to redecorate the whole place, right after their parents went back to Italy and left the family business to them. But somehow he had reached a point where nothing mattered anymore. He was beyond pain and other trivial earthly matters. What was a mere spit of venom when he was already floating in an ocean of pain and terrible realizations?

He slowly turned around, trying to keep a calm composure. It was not so hard, actually. He had no idea what else to do anyway. Megumi and Satoshi were giving him worried looks from the kitchen door. So they had been listening. For how long he didn't know, nor did he care. He did not try to smile to them or look reassuring in any way. He did not look alarmed either. Or angry that they spied on him. He was just… empty. Reality was currently feeling pretty unreal but it had hit him already so it was too late for denial. The only thing he could do now was to move on, and he was planning to do just that while he still could. He took a deep breath to chase away the numbness that had taken over his body, finally found it in him to give them the best confident smile he could and said:

"Let's go back to work. Customers will be coming soon and we have to be ready."

That was now official: there was no time for a childish cooking competition anymore. They were all in deep trouble and they needed help. Soon.

Or a miracle. A miracle would be fine, too.

* * *

I hope you enjoyed it! I'm kind of worried about this chapter, since no native speaker proofread it (contrary to the first one). So feel free to tell me what you think or even report mistakes you've noticed. I'd really appreciate that.

See you soon!


	3. A New Hope

'ello my littles croissants !

I'm a bit late, sorry about that... But hey, I got a long new chapter for you! Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 3: A New Hope**

 _The least you could say about their first encounter with Alice Nakiri and Ryou Kurokiba was that it was … memorable. They had come one day before service to announce the opening of their restaurant. That was quite a common thing to do in the neighborhood so the employees weren't surprised to see them. Actually, they were all pretty curious to know who the new owners were and what kind of restaurant it would be. However, the way they presented themselves was something no one expected._

 _She came in first with an aura dripping with confidence. He walked in right after her, silent and threatening, and stayed behind her the whole time without saying a word. She took care of all the talking and asked to see the owners. When they arrived with a warm smile and welcoming words, like they usually did in such circumstances, they were greeted with a long speech about … basically how Alice's cutting edge technology and molecular cooking would soon prove their superiority over their primitive Italian cuisine. Something like that._

 _Takumi immediately went in full challenge mode, which was quite a great sight. They hadn't seen it in a long time. Sadly, it soon proved to be completely unnecessary for two reasons. One was that the new restaurant had troubles finding customers, mostly because they couldn't find a good menu with some kind of unity. Thus, challenges such as "Let's see who gets the most customers" were out of the question. The other was that actually, Alice and Ryou were very nice people. Alice loved to impress and excelled at making a memorable entrance but the rest usually failed to follow. In that aspect, she was a lot like Takumi. She also had a bit of a spoiled child behavior, which could be explained by her belonging to one of the most famous family in the culinary world. At that point, it could almost be called a dynasty… As for Ryou, well … He could be really scary when in the kitchen, but outside of it he simply followed Alice's orders, so he wasn't as much of a threat as he looked like the first time they met. The fact that they were likeable wasn't a reason not to challenge them of course, but it was out of the question until the new restaurant found some financial stability. The Aldinis even tried to help them at some point, which their new neighbors immediately refused._

 _In the end, the only curious thing about their arrival was that the Phantom became much more aggressive soon after they opened. No one could pin-point exactly when it started so it was possible that it was just an impression. Nevertheless, it was quite a persistent impression and although no one blamed them directly, the thought that they could be the reason for this sudden change was still there._

 _._

"I'm sorry Megumi but I don't think this dish should be on tomorrow's special menu."

"Oh…"

She looked disappointed and Takumi felt sorry for her, but what he was tasting was a bit… underwhelming. It was interesting for sure, but it wasn't what he got used to. At the same time, it tasted a lot more like her than usual and he couldn't explain the reason for this sudden change.

Unless the real change was coming from him, he wondered. Erina's secretary had only come the day before and now he felt like nothing was the same. Maybe he was just extra hard because of stress or something?

To clear his doubts he called Zenji, who was working that day. He didn't know about the details of what happened the day before and was obviously not as affected by it than the rest of the staff. His answer was clear: yes, it was quite different from what Megumi had been cooking for the past few weeks and no, it wasn't good enough to be on the special menu of the day.

She looked at her feet with a sad expression and as he tasted it once again, Takumi said in a soft tone:

"Don't worry, bad days happen. Plus, I think a miso minestrone is a great idea. It only needs a few adjustments, and you still have time to improve it for tomorrow."

"I really wonder why you haven't decided to create the special menu a day in advance before…" Zenji said thoughtfully.

"Me too" Takumi replied. "I guess I just liked the challenge, but I have to admit it may have been a bit selfish of me."

He turned his attention back to Megumi who still looked a little down. Since she felt so much more confident these days he'd hoped that she would take it in a positive way, but looking at her now, it seemed that he was wrong. Unsure about how to comfort her, he simply used the advice he wished someone had given him when he was still learning how to cook:

"You really should try again. Don't let this dish be a failure."

She smiled a bit and he then proceeded to explain her very carefully what in his opinion was wrong with it. Her next attempt was way better and they unanimously decided to have it on the special menu.

.

"Nii-chan, don't you find it weird that Megumi's style changed again all of a sudden?" Isami asked on their way back.

"Yeah. But it tasted more like her, don't you think? It was warm and appeasing. More like what she cooked when she arrived."

"You're right. I hope it means she'll feel better from now on. She hasn't been quite herself lately."

"Really?"

"Nii-chan, don't tell me you haven't noticed how concerned she looked for the past few weeks!"

Takumi didn't answer.

"You were too focused on beating her in your so-called challenges to notice, weren't you?" Isami stated with a mocking smile.

Takumi still gave no answer but his face became redder and redder as his brother burst into laugh. Being focused on cooking to the point of losing sight of reality was so typical of him that he shouldn't have been surprised. It would never stop being hilarious though…

.

Improvement in Megumi's mood or not (and everyone was glad to notice that it was slowly getting better), the Trattoria Aldini was still in deep trouble. They had to find a solution to their Phantom problem before Nakiri's visit and three days later, they still had nothing.

Eizan had come to the Trattoria soon after Arato's announcement, offering them for the umpteenth time a large amount of money for it, as well as a position as a chef in one of his own restaurants for Takumi. He left adding that they should probably accept his offer while they still had the chance since he wasn't sure how much he wanted to hire a disgraced cook. Especially if the reason for such disgrace was Erina Nakiri…

It seemed to be clear in the blonde's mind that he wouldn't leave the Trattoria unless he was absolutely forced to, but Isami hesitated. If something really happened, maybe it would be better for at least one of them to be left out of it…

"Thank you for the offer but we don't need your help" Takumi had answered with a confident smile. "Even if I have to deal with Erina's fury, I know I'll still bounce back."

As expected of his brother, he trusted his abilities as a chef completely. It would be great if he was like that all the time instead of being a complete dork every time cooking wasn't involved, Isami had thought. Although, maybe it was better this way. The blonde would be absolutely insufferable otherwise. Not to mention that he would lose one of the greatest pleasures of his life as a little brother…

Eizan had left soon after that, having apparently no new arguments to oppose since the last time he sent someone. Somehow, Takumi's confidence managed to make his twin feel better about their future. However, they still had to face the cruel reality: even if bouncing back was possible – and everyone thought it was highly improbable – the best thing would be to find a solution and have no reason to fall in the first place.

"But it will be fine if she comes during the day" said one of the waitress in an attempt to lighten the mood.

The whole staff was gathered for an emergency meeting and until now, no one seemed to have any idea how to solve the problem.

"That's not likely if she first goes to Alice and Ryou's restaurant" Satoshi replied. "Plus, I'm really starting to think the Phantom has something against us these days. Even our best clients are targets now."

"I don't believe he wants to put us into trouble" Megumi intervened. "I just think he doesn't see the consequences of his actions. He seems to me like a chaotic being."

"That might have been the case at the beginning, but now… Maybe we've angered him somehow? If he's really a supernatural being, perhaps we should try giving him offerings or something" someone proposed, ignoring the skeptical and baffled expressions everyone adopted as he said that.

"And why not start a cult? Maybe we should make a sacrifice?" another replied sardonically.

"Okay but what if he's working for the mafia?"

Everyone gave a surprised look to the one who said that.

"What? It's an Italian restaurant after all… Owned by Italian people…" he weakly tried to oppose.

Isami burst into laughter.

"Honestly Thomas, I think you should stop watching mafia movies" he replied when he calmed down. "Plus if they wanted something, trust me that they would have come directly to ask for it" he added with a dark expression.

"How do you know that?"

"He doesn't" Takumi quickly answered for his brother, knowing this joke could last for a while if he didn't stop it now.

"Vengeance maybe?" someone else tried. "Like a vendetta or something."

"Get real, we're in Paris, not in Corsica. Plus, who would want to get revenge?"

"Okay so first of all it can happen anywhere now. And second … I don't know. But there are many people who would love to see our place closed down…"

"Come on. We might be popular but it's not like we're making the other restaurants lose their clients or anything. And I think we have quite a good relationship with our neighbors."

"But what about this albino girl? She seemed quite threatening when she arrived… And I don't like her tall friend, he's giving me the creeps."

"Who? Alice? We've been to her place quite a few times since then and she's actually very nice. Plus, she really can't blame us for their problems. Even they must realize it's because their menu is chaotic and their styles don't blend."

"Don't forget the poor management choices."

"It's getting better though."

"Okay but think about it: the Phantom became more aggressive after they arrived… Maybe they are paying him or something."

"Now that we're talking about it, do you remember that man who looks like a cheap yakuza? He seemed pretty bitter when you refused to sell this place."

"If you're going this way there was also this Japanese girl who absolutely wanted Takumi to work in her three stars Italian restaurant."

"Mizuhara? Don't be ridiculous! She has self-respect."

"Sure but Cheap Yakuza Guy…"

"His name is Etsuya Eizan and I seriously think you should start learning names. How is that even possible for a waiter not to remember basic things like that?"

"I only remember the important ones."

"Anyway, we all seem to agree that the Phantom is against us for some reason yet to determine" Satoshi summed up.

"But I-" Megumi started.

"All except Megumi" the waitress from the beginning concluded.

"We also seem to agree that it is a person who, probably, has an interest in seeing the place shut down" Satoshi continued.

"All except Maxime who believes we should offer him human sacrifices" the waitress completed.

"Hey, I never said that!"

"You would have, eventually."

The head waiter finished before the two could start arguing:

"So maybe we should all think about who would meet these criteria and start investigating."

"I don't know" someone objected. "That seems like a lot of work and we barely know where to start…"

"Sure, but do we really have a choice? It's either that or learning a new job. And I really don't see myself going back to studies."

"By the way Megumi, since you live here, have you never seen him?" Isami asked, focusing everyone's attention on her.

"W-well … not really. I sometimes hear noises but I assume it's just some animal or something."

"Are you trying to say there are rats in my kitchen?" Takumi asked with a frown, his voice dripping with venom.

"N-no! Of course not! M-maybe there really _is_ someone like Satoshi-san said but I … I've never seen them or anything!"

That seemed to appease the chef and Megumi internally let out a sigh of relief.

"Or maybe we should call a private detective agency" the waitress suddenly proposed.

"Lucie, you've been making fun of everyone's idea and now you go even deeper into the cliché."

"No no, I swear that's a real thing! I don't know any around here but I got interested in the subject recently and it's actually a recognized job. Like doctors or freelance translators. You can even get a diploma!"

"And you really think they would be interested in this case?" Satoshi asked.

"They don't have to as long as you pay them. Maybe we could try finding one and leave it to them."

"Yes, I think we could…" Takumi said in a thoughtful tone. "Isami, what do you think?"

"If we can find one quickly, I guess it's a good idea. At least Arato can't say we're doing nothing, and it sounds like our best option right now."

"Well, if no one has a better idea, I guess we'll go with it. Thank you, Lucie."

"No problem boss! I'd love to keep my job, too."

"Speaking of which, we should start preparing for the evening service. Thank you all for your contribution." Takumi announced.

Everyone went back to their activities, the ones who didn't work the evening shift gave the others a few words of encouragement before leaving and thus ended the emergency meeting, with even more questions than before but at least a small dash of hope.

As he headed back to the kitchen, Takumi still found himself wishing for a miracle again. It was starting to become a habit…

.

Whether his prayers had been heard or not, a sort of miracle actually happened the following day. It was not a huge thing and the Phantom had not been stopped in any way, but it was still something: someone was finally interested in their case.

Their saviors (or so they hoped) came in the form of two middle-aged Japanese men who presented themselves as private detectives. One was a short-haired muscular man called Gin Doujima. The other, who seemed to be the leader as he treated his partner like some sexy assistant, was thinner with long red hair and called himself Jouichiro Yukihira.

The surprising fact about their arrival was that the brothers never contacted them. Suspicious, Takumi asked how they knew about it.

"It has been quite the talk around here" Yukuhira answered casually.

"But more importantly," Doujima added, "Fumio Daimidou, the warden of the _Résidence de l'Étoile Polaire_ * told us about your problem. She heard about it from her residents working here and thought we could be interested."

Both brothers nodded. The _Résidence de l'Étoile Polaire_ was a well-known place where cooks from all over the world could stay for a very competitive price. It focused especially on students and young chefs who had a hard time finding a place to live given how expansive housing was in Paris. Zenji and Satoshi were both residents and they sometimes mentioned life there. In fact, Satoshi was actively trying to recruit Megumi, convinced that she would feel better in a place full of people in the same situation as her. Everyone had agreed to that but she failed Fumio's test the first time and never tried again afterward. The Aldini brothers didn't insist, not minding having her at the restaurant. Satoshi didn't give up.

After checking the newcomers' business card, Isami invited them to the small office of the restaurant.

"So, how much do you know about the Phantom already?" Takumi asked after everyone was seated.

"Same as everyone I guess" Yukihira answered. "There's a caped man lurking around your restaurant at night, feeding people awful mixtures. He seems to have a thing for seafood, especially dried octopus, which is surprising for a country like France. This and the pair of chopsticks he reportedly uses could lead us to think of an Eastern Asian person. I'd say Japanese. Anyway, it started quite innocently and no one thought much of it, but he became more and more aggressive and now attacks everyone, whereas he used to focus on bad clients. Gin, do you have anything to add?"

"I believe it's a good summary. More importantly, I think Fumio also mentioned you were in a hurry?"

"Quite so. We have about a week to stop him. Maybe even less. Erina Nakiri is supposed to come and we can't let her get attacked. Her secretary was quite clear about what would happen if she did…"

And thus started a whole conversation involving everything the brothers knew and what the detectives could do. Somehow, Yukihira seemed extremely interested in the story of Megumi's recent change and even asked to try her cooking. This request took the brothers aback but they accepted to ask her as soon as they agreed on at least a provisional price.

New surprise, it was extremely low compared to what they expected. Almost suspiciously low. There was something weird with these two men, Isami decided. Maybe they had no bad intentions, but there was something they were not telling them. They offered to work more than full-time while only making them pay for a normal week, no matter the number of extra hours they would have to do. That was odd but no reason to refuse after all, which convinced them to accept their offer, especially after they had called Fumio who confirmed their identity and warmly recommended them.

They discussed a few details and agreed on a final contract. Then, as promised, Takumi asked Megumi if she could cook something for them. She gladly accepted since all the preparations were over and while she was busy, Yukihira decided to start interrogating the personal.

Megumi later arrived with two of her specials of the day, namely tonkatsu served with a colorful caponata. It smelled absolutely delicious and both men tried it with enthusiasm.

For Gin, it was like a sunny harvest festival where his partner and he were dancing with a joyful group of pigs. All of them were wearing traditional Sicilian clothes. Jouichiro's black shoes were clicking on the paves and he was smiling brightly in his white shirt and red scarf, smiling like he hadn't seen him smile for a long time. Meanwhile, his own long red skirt was moving gracefully with each of his moves in a playful rustle.

They were dancing in a sea of colorful vegetables now, getting covered in their juices and at that moment, Gin found himself wishing the dance would never stop.

Jouichiro, on the other hand, was feeling out of place. The taste was not what he expected. He had hoped for something different and no matter how warm and gleeful this dance was, he could not enjoy it fully.

When he had a look at both men as they ate, Isami couldn't help but notice Yukihira's disappointed expression. He seemed completely lost in his thoughts and was frowning slightly. He still finished his plate and both detectives complimented Megumi for her cooking. They revealed an extensive knowledge on the subject, which seemed to please Takumi. He had a tendency to trust people who knew about his field.

All seemed to go well but the detective's disappointment was apparently too much and he quickly left the restaurant as soon as Megumi went back to the kitchen, not even listening to Doujima who tried to stop him.

"Is something the matter?" Isami asked.

"No, not really" the detective answered evasively.

"I think there's something more to this case than just your normal business, isn't it?"

"Well … not anymore it seems."

"What do you mean?"

"You see, that's a bit personal, so…"

"Okay, I get it" Isami sighed. "But if you are going to work with us, don't you think we should have at least an idea of what this case means to you?"

Doujima remained silent for a few seconds, like he was wondering whether he should tell the truth or not, and if yes, which parts exactly. He finally answered, slowly, choosing his words with care:

"We thought the Phantom and Megumi's sudden improvement in cooking might be related. But after tasting it, I don't think it is. That would have meant a lot to Jouichiro, so that explains why he is so disappointed."

There was another pause and Isami thought it explained nothing and only made the whole situation more mysterious. Then, Doujima added:

"But don't worry, we'll still do our best to solve your case before Erina comes. That doesn't change anything we've already agreed on and all hope is not lost, as my partner will soon realize. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to talk to him. You'll hear from us soon. And don't hesitate to call if anything happens, okay?"

"Sure. Goodbye Mr. Doujima."

Well … that was only one more mystery, Isami thought with a sigh. He should have been used to it by now.

.

 _[Recording of Satoshi Isshiki's questioning]_

 _J. Yukihira: So, Mr. Isshiki, it seems that you are the only one here who has already seen the Phantom. Can you tell us how it happened?_

 _S. Isshiki: Sure. I was exploring the Trattoria's attic like I sometimes do-_

 _J. Yukihira: We heard about that, yes. But no one could explain why you're doing it. Is there a reason for that?_

 _S. Isshiki: Oh, I just like the dim and dusty atmosphere. It reminds me of my childhood home's attic, back in Japan. Plus, it leads to the most unexpected places!_

 _J. Yukihira: I see…_

 _G. Doujima: And what exactly do you do there?_

 _S. Isshiki: Nothing special really. Just exploring, mostly. But also … there were these strange noises I heard sometimes._

 _J. Yukihira: What kind of noises?_

 _S. Isshiki: Like light and quick footsteps. It reminded me a bit of the sounds I heard as a kid, since our attic was full of small animals like weasels or a dormouse that stayed for a while. Except these sounded heavier. More human._

 _G. Doujima: And you never told anyone about these?_

 _S. Isshiki: Well, that sounded_ like _an animal, but I was sure it wasn't one. And as I said, the attic leads to unexpected places, including the neighboring buildings. So I thought it was maybe just a person from there, exploring like I did. I certainly wasn't expecting an actual supernatural being to be responsible for these noises…_

 _J. Yukihira: How exactly did you meet the Phantom?_

 _S. Isshiki: I was just walking around, thinking about nothing in particular. For once, I wasn't really looking for the stranger in the attic, so needless to say that I was taken by surprise. We both were, I think. He froze when he saw me and then quickly ran away. I was too shocked to run after him and by the time I recovered, it was too late._

 _J. Yukihira: Can you describe him?_

 _S. Isshiki: Sure. Our encounter was quite memorable. He was about my size I guess, and wore dark loose clothes. But he was definitely male, no doubt about that. He had a white expressionless face and his eyes were two dark pits. It looked a bit like a mask. Maybe it was one? I didn't have time to check on that because what really caught my attention was his hair. It might have been the light but it really looked like his head was on fire. Unless it was actually on fire … who knows? I didn't have time to figure it out because he ran away at that moment._

 _J. Yukihira: Wait. Do you mean he had red hair? Spiky?_

 _S. Isshiki: I can't tell. Probably, yes. But I couldn't see him properly because of the light. He was in front of a window, so…_

 _G. Doujima: Did you see him after that?_

 _S. Isshiki: No, never. Actually, the hushed footsteps completely stopped after that and I never heard him in the attic again._

 _G. Doujima: When did that happen? Before or after the attacks started?_

 _S. Isshiki: The noises started before the attacks. There had already been a few when I saw him, but the name of "Phantom" wasn't even coined at the time._

 _G. Doujima: Okay Mr. Isshiki, I think we learned enough. Thank you for your time._

 _[End of the record]_

* * *

*The Polar Star dorm but adapted to Paris. I found it funny to use a French name. Don't judge me. (also, tell my if it sounds too weird, I can still change that and use the English name from now on; I have no idea how it looks like to people who don't know French at all so...)

I hope you enjoyed! As always, don't hesitate to tell me what you think and see you in two weeks!


	4. Tonight's the night

**Chapter 4: Tonight's the night**

 _[Recording of Ryou Kurokiba's questioning]_

 _J. Yukihira: So you said you were Miss Nakiri's aide, right?_

 _R. Kurokiba: Yeah._

 _J. Yukihira: How long have you known her?_

 _R. Kurokiba: I've known Miss Nakiri since we're kids._

 _J. Yukihira: And you still call her "Miss"?_

 _R. Kurokiba: She insists on that. I don't care._

 _J. Yukihira: Can you tell me why you opened your restaurant?_

 _R. Kurokiba: It was her idea. I followed._

 _J. Yukihira: I heard it wasn't as successful as you expected._

 _R. Kurokiba: Yeah. She took that decision without giving it much thought. But we'll manage._

 _J. Yukihira: You don't seem surprised at all. Shall I assume that it's not the first time such a thing happens?_

 _R. Kurokiba: No. She always does that. Never learns. But I guess we'll be fine in the end. We just need more time._

 _J. Yukihira: So you're not bitter that it doesn't work?_

 _R. Kurokiba: Not really. It was predictable._

 _J. Yukihira: We heard that the Phantom became more aggressive soon after your arrival._

 _R. Kurokiba: Oh, that. Wait a second. [ruffle sounds] I DON'T KNOW WHO THAT BASTARD IS OR WHAT HE WANTS BUT IF I FIND HIM I'LL BEAT HIM TO THE GROUND!_

 _J. Yukihira: Hem… So I'll take it you're feeling quite … hostile toward him?_

 _R. Kurokiba: Does he really think he can make a restaurant close with such a cowardly method?! If he wants to beat them he'd better do it through his cooking! AAARGH! Just thinking about it makes me want to punch him in the face!_

 _Muffled voice: Ryou? Are you going in berserk mode again? Be nicer to the detectives! [whistle sounds]_

 _J. Yukihira: Okay I … think it'll be enough._

 _[End of the record]_

.

"Hinako, why did you drag me here again?" asked a slightly annoyed Shinomiya.

"Because it will do you good to eat something different for once. It might even give you new ideas!"

"In an Italian restaurant?"

"Why not?"

"Hinako…" he warned.

"Okay, I didn't feel like cooking tonight, but I didn't want to eat outside on my own" she admitted. "Now stop complaining, we're already there anyway."

They were both greeted warmly as they entered the Trattoria. Despite being a much respected chef herself, Hinako Inui was a regular customer. Because she was cooking for others all day, she sometimes felt too tired to do it for herself. However, the real reason that made her come here was beyond the quality of the food.

"Where is my sweet little Megumi?" she asked joyfully as she entered. "I haven't seen her for so long!"

"She's busy in the kitchen as you can imagine, chef Inui" Isshiki answered with a bright smile. "I suppose you want her to cook your dinner tonight?"

"Of course! Especially since I heard she became so good! I'm so disappointed that I couldn't come earlier…" she said with a pout.

Hinako's obsession with Megumi wasn't a secret for anyone in the Trattoria. It was, after all, her main reason for coming here. _Ah, sweet Megumi…_ she thought with a dreamy smile. She would never forget their first meeting…

 _She had come to the kitchen after the service to compliment the chef and there she was, cleaning the dishes, her sweet, pretty hands forced to such an ungrateful task… She went directly to her, completely ignoring the chef she had insisted on meeting in the first place. She was even more adorable from close, her eyes full of innocence and surprise._

 _Her first reflex had been to offer her a place in her own restaurant, far from these people who treated her like a slave, but Megumi had refused, for some reason. Probably a form of Stockholm syndrome or something_ _… But Hinako kept coming and never gave up. Someday, her lovely little aide would accept her offer. She knew that!_

"I promise you won't be disappointed" the waiter replied, putting her out of her reverie. "She made enormous progress since the last time you came."

Isshiki took their order, asked if he should call Isami to help them chose a wine to go with it and left after they accepted.

"Tell me Hinako … I know we're coming a bit late but don't you find the restaurant quite … empty?" Shinomiya remarked. "Last time we came there were still plenty of customers…"

"You're right… Even though we're in the middle of the week there should be more people than that. Especially now that Megumi is becoming a famous chef!"

Isami arrived at that moment and after ordering a bottle of white wine for two ("And it has better to be the best choice to complement Megumi's dish!" Hinako warned), they asked if there was a reason for the lack of customers.

"Oh well … our Phantom issue is getting a little bit out of hand these days" he sighed. "But we have taken some measures to stop him so let's hope the customers come back soon."

"And you are letting Megumi work with all those risks? What if she gets attacked?"

"I guess we can assume that since she remains _inside_ the restaurant, she is quite safe."

"She still would be better in _my_ restaurant" she huffed. "Perfectly safe and ghost-free."

"Maybe she would be even better in a Japanese restaurant, that's right," he admitted with a smile, "but it would be a terrible loss if she left us now, you know."

Same old, same old. Shinomiya was tired of hearing this conversation over and over every time Hinako dragged him here, and he couldn't believe the sommelier was so patient. But that was part of his job, he guessed.

Their meals finally arrived, both created and cooked by Megumi: vegetable raviolis in a rich scampi stock. The first bite was so full of flavors it was almost confusing. It felt like jumping from an airplane and losing the sense of up and down. From the second onward however, everything started making sense. Their free fall was becoming slow and relaxing. It felt like their parachute, a ravioli parachute, had deployed and now they could enjoy the wonderful landscape. They were flying over a deep blue sea and zucchini, tomatoes and eggplants were slowly falling beside them.

As they reached for their drink, they came closer and closer to the calm and inviting water. Thanks to the wine's dryness and crispiness, the scampi's flavor suddenly became stronger. Their parachute disappeared, and they reached the sea where they were welcomed in the loving arms of a mother scampi. While they swam together in this warm embrace, floating around with ease, the vegetables started landing around them and quickly dissolved in the water, giving it a richer flavor that partly appeased the previous dryness. The dish was warm yet the wine made it refreshing, both flavors being perfectly balanced.

Hinako slowly opened her eyes. She didn't even realize she had closed them to enjoy the dish fully. There were almost tears in them and as she shared a look of amazement with her friend, she was certain of one thing: Megumi was a perfect angel and she needed her by her side more than anything.

Shinomiya, on the other hand, was completely speechless. Could this dish really come from the dunce he briefly met last time he came? (Or more precisely, last time Hinako forced him to go out with her…) Maybe she _was_ promising after all, he thought. Until now he had believed that the clumsy and shy aide was just an innocent crush but as always, he was forced to admit that Hinako's instinct had been right all along.

Never underestimate the Mist Empress, he remembered as he tried to stop her monologue about how great Megumi was and how she absolutely had to work with her.

.

 _[Recording of Alice Nakiri's questioning]_

 _A. Nakiri: Wow! I never thought I'd ever be interviewed by a private detective! It's quite exciting!_

 _G. Doujima: Well, thank you for your time miss Nakiri. Now, can you tell us what relationship you have with Mr. Kurokiba?_

 _A. Nakiri: Sure. He's been my aide and assistant since we were kids. You see, I decided to have one since I heard that my cousin did._

 _G. Doujima: Your cousin?_

 _A. Nakiri: Yeah. Erina. I thought it was important to have a better aide than her and show her who's best._

 _G. Doujima: Is that why you decided to open a restaurant?_

 _A. Nakiri: Exactly! Having a successful restaurant in Paris is the best way to prove my worth and show the superiority of molecular gastronomy!_

 _G. Doujima: But it's not working that well, right?_

 _A. Nakiri: It's fine. We'll be fine. We always manage in the end and this time is no different. I know my cooking will prevail._

 _G. Doujima: This time is no different from …?_

 _A. Nakiri: The other times I decided to do something on a whim and it didn't work so well at first. I just need more time to adjust._

 _G. Doujima: Why do you think it doesn't work?_

 _A. Nakiri: I suppose I should have given it more thought before I opened it. You see, I won several cooking competitions so I thought this would be the same. But actually, managing a restaurant requires a lot more skills than just being able to create wonderful dishes… I'm not used to that yet. Also, I thought Ryou would be able to take care of that since he worked in a restaurant when he was young, but he said he was just in the kitchen and had no idea what was going on outside of it. You really can't count on him…_

 _G. Doujima: And what about the Phantom? You've never met him?_

 _A. Nakiri: No! That's disappointing because meeting him could be really exciting! … I guess the part where I have to eat disgusting food wouldn't be that great though, but it's part of Ryou's job to protect me from weird strangers after all._

 _G. Doujima: And you've never seen or heard anything unusual?_

 _A. Nakiri: No, not at all. Like I said, I was really disappointed._

 _G. Doujima: We heard that he became more aggressive soon after your arrival._

 _A. Nakiri: Oh yeah, I've heard about that, too! But I have no idea why it happened and I'm not sure it was so soon after we came here. And it's not like we can pinpoint exactly when it started anyway._

 _[long uncomfortable silence]_

 _A. Nakiri: What?! You think we're responsible for that?! Like we wanted to get rid of our rivals and paid him to do it or something?!_

 _G. Doujima: We're not sure about anything right now._

 _A. Nakiri: Well I can assure you that we have nothing to do with it! How would we contact him anyway?! But there is one thing you can be sure of right now, and it's that you'd better focus on finding the real culprit before Erina arrives because if she gets attacked tomorrow, I'll never forgive you! … Also, forget I just said that._

 _G. Doujima: Wait … she's coming tomorrow?_

 _A. Nakiri: Oh, yes… I wanted to tell you and then I forgot. Now if you have no further questions, I'll leave. We have a lot to do before she arrives._

 _G. Doujima: Fine, you're free to go. Thank you for your time._

 _A. Nakiri: It was a pleasure. Except for the part where you tried to accuse us. Bye then! [sounds of door opening] Come on, Ryou. We're leaving. … Oh, hi Takumi!_

 _[End of the record]_

 _._

It was their second emergency meeting in a week. This time, all of the employees working that evening were gathered to discuss their plan for the night. Contrary to last time, everyone was silent and the atmosphere was unusually tense. Erina's coming was their best chance to catch the Phantom, but they could also lose everything in the next few hours.

The Aldini brothers, Megumi, Satoshi and a few waiters were there as well as Norah, the service manager who came with a ton of Moroccan pastries; and despite how delicious they were, this was not really a good sign. She only brought such large amounts of pastries when she was feeling stressed out and this time, there were more than anyone here could eat. They really were the best though, and as Satoshi bit in a gazelle horn*, the light and sweet flavor almost made him feel like things were not looking so grim after all.

Once everyone was comfortably seated with a pastry, which made the situation look way more relaxed than it actually was, Yukihira started:

"As you know, Erina Nakiri is coming to the Trattoria tonight. You are all aware of who she is and what her opinion means in the culinary world. This means that all of you will have to do your best and make sure she is entirely satisfied with her meal. That's the easy part, which is saying something. As for the hard one: everyone will also have to be extra careful and prevent her from being attacked by all means. The service part, you'll see with your managers. As for Nakiri's protection… Assistant, if you please…"

As always, Doujima didn't even twitch at the nickname. Instead of protesting, he firmly flipped the first page of the paperboard he brought in the main room, and started explaining:

"Here's the plan: Jouichiro and I are going to patrol around the restaurant and look for any kind of suspicious activity. We'll also try to remain close to Nakiri since she's the most likely to get attacked tonight. Thus, we'll be able to intervene quickly in case something goes wrong. The good news is that we already have an idea of her schedule for the evening. She made a reservation for two at 8:30 PM, so she'll probably leave her cousin's place and be in the dangerous area around 8:00 – 8:15 PM. On top of our surveillance, one of you will have to stay outside the restaurant like you did for the past few days, in case something suspicious happens around here. You will officially be there to greet the customers but I want you to be extra careful. Plus, you'll have to tell us when Nakiri is about to leave the Trattoria so that we can keep an eye on her until she's safe. With this, we should be able to at least protect Nakiri and at best, catch the Phantom and stop him once and for all."

There were a few shy applause in the room.

"Does anyone have questions?" the detectives asked.

Silence and scattered "no" answered them and they dismissed everyone after confirming that they would remain available if they had any doubts later.

.

"Why isn't she coming by taxi again?" Lucie asked for the umpteenth time.

"Because it's a warm evening and her cousin's place is really close from here" Satoshi answered patiently.

"Sure, but if that isn't an invitation to get attacked, I don't know what is…"

"I know. But that's her decision and it's not like we can force her to change her mind. Plus, I don't think she's really aware of the danger. And it wouldn't be a good idea to let her know that even _we_ are concerned for her safety."

"Yeah, I guess you're right" she sighed.

The atmosphere in the restaurant was incredibly tense and even the early customer's merry conversations weren't enough to hide it. Isami had been fussing around his brother for most of the afternoon until he was forced to take care of the customers, and the room staff had troubles putting on their usual smiles. Maxime was grumbling outside that the others were cheating at rock-paper-scissor and in the kitchen, Megumi was obviously doing her best to remain focused and not let stress take the best of her. In the end, the only person who didn't seem concerned by the situation at all was Takumi.

It was a well-known fact that the head chef was extremely confident in his cooking abilities – over-confident, some would say – but no one could believe how detached he was from everything. It was like he wasn't aware that his cooking wasn't the only important factor here. Maybe he really didn't realize it, actually. That wouldn't have surprised his twin, at least…

Nevertheless, everyone found it reassuring, in a way. If someone could remain that cool and collected, then maybe the situation wasn't that desperate after all.

"There's nothing I can do now apart from giving everything I have and put it on a plate. And I know I can do that. So there's no point in worrying, really" he explained when Megumi asked how he could stay so calm.

Truth be told, he was feeling a bit nervous. But he was never going to admit it. For now, he only had to trust his ability to cook, and that was something he had a complete faith in.

.

Gin had been walking around the neighborhood for what seemed like an eternity and he still noticed nothing unusual. Sure, tonight was the big night and he had to be on guard, but that didn't make his task less tedious and boring. And whenever he felt boredom creep up, he suddenly felt a rush of stress because _he could not afford to relax one bit_. It was a very uncomfortable situation.

He sighed after getting frightened by a stray cat and wondered if Jouichiro was doing better on his side. Since two people following Erina would be too easy to notice, they had decided to split up. And since Gin wasn't exactly built for hiding, he was the one who had to patrol around.

After a while, he noticed someone in the street. The stranger looked perfectly normal and the detective was ready to ignore him, when he called him and asked:

"Excuse me sir, can you tell me where the Eiffel Tower is?"

"You really want to see it at that hour?"

"No, of course not" the man snorted. "But I'm looking for a place nearby and if I can find it, I can find my way just fine."

Gin smiled to the stranger and politely gave him directions. It's not because you're in Paris and on an important mission that you can't be nice to strangers, he thought.

.

Jouichiro had a hard time following the two women. The pink haired one was looking around all the time and seemed to suspect everyone and everything. He was quite glad that someone cared for Erina as much as he did right now, but that was really not helping him. He sighed as he tried to keep up with them when suddenly, a woman appeared in front of him and asked:

"Excuse me, do you have a lighter?"

"Nope, sorry" he briefly answered without giving her a look.

But the stranger wasn't done with him yet.

"Also, I'm looking for a nice place to have a drink. Do you know any in the area?"

"No."

"Well, I think there is something not too far away. Maybe we could…"

But Jouichiro wasn't listening at all and started leaving without a word.

"Hey, don't leave like that!" she exclaimed, getting in his way.

"I'm busy right now."

"Oh, come on Sweetie. Don't be like that…"

There was a scream. The detective swore as he shoved the woman aside and ran toward it. He heard her shout something and didn't care one bit. That's Paris for you, he thought.

Arato was already on the ground when he arrived and the Phantom was dangerously close to Erina, who now didn't look as confident and self-assured as she did while he was following her. He lost no time reflecting on it as he screamed:

"Souma, stop!"

The figure froze and slowly turned around. It was definitely male, but looked nothing like his son. _Why would he?_ Jouichiro reminded himself. Everything since the very beginning of this case was pointing toward … he didn't know what yet, but it wasn't Souma.

The stranger turned around with his chopsticks still in hand and dropped them to fight him. _An idiot. Good_ , the detective thought. If he'd decided to still feed her that stuff, there was nothing he could have done to stop him.

He managed to avoid a few punches, but fighting really wasn't his thing. He usually left that to Gin, who was better suited for it, although he hated to use violence. And thinking about his assistant, where the hell was he when he needed him?!

A beastly scream was heard across the street and the other detective arrived soon after. Needless to say that the fight was short. The Phantom tried to run away (after all, who wouldn't do the same when faced with a big man running toward them at full speed?) but failed miserably as Jouichiro viciously tripped him up.

He then let Gin take care of the rest and went to Erina to see if she was all right. She was sitting on the ground, in shock. He tried to give her a hand and help her get back on her feet when the pink haired woman rushed between them screaming:

"Don't touch her!"

"Well, you should have done that to the other one. I'm the nice guy here" he protested.

She seemed both embarrassed and angry, and he heard Gin say:

"Don't say that Jouichiro. I'm sure she did her best to protect her."

He sighed as she went to check on Erina. However, her boss wasn't paying any attention to what she was saying. Her eyes were glued on the detective's face.

"J-Jouichiro … Saiba…" she uttered in disbelief.

Oh, so she did recognize him after all. Man, this was going to be a loooong night…


	5. Phantom of the Past

**Chapter 5: Phantom of the past**

Jouichiro gave Erina an awkward smile and said:

"Hi! I see you've grown up a lot since last time, Erina."

She closed her eyes and for a few seconds, she seemed ready to cry. However, when she opened them again, they were filled with rage.

"Of course I've grown up! You never came back to see me in almost twenty years!"

"So long already? Haha, sorry about that."

"As if it changed anything…" she muttered with a pout.

It was funny, Erina thought, how the way you react to things is always different from what you imagine. For all these years she thought her reunion with this man would be a moving one. She could easily picture how she'd be overflowed with joy and maybe cry a bit – although she would never admit it. How she would only be mad at him later, after making sure he was real. But now that he was finally in front of her, she was just … angry. He'd just saved her from a terrible experience, but the only thing she could feel right now was how furious she was that he left her behind and gave her no news for all this time.

The atmosphere was becoming quite tense but fortunately for everyone, Doujima announced that he had the Phantom under control and proposed that they all came back to the Trattoria. He wanted to question him as soon as possible.

"Go there?" Hisako intervened. "That's out of the question! We're leaving right now!"

"But you're safe now. The Phantom can't hurt you anymore."

"Miss Erina still got attacked! She's not…"

"I'm fine, Hisako" she said softly. "But I don't feel like eating anything right now…"

"You can at least come and wait for a taxi there" Doujima offered. "You two seem too shaken to go back to your hotel by yourselves."

The women nodded – although Hisako still obviously didn't like the idea – and they all went to the restaurant. Erina's legs felt a bit shaky and as she followed these two familiar figures from her past, her mind was buzzing with questions. What was her childhood idol doing here? What was his link to the Trattoria? How come he was there to rescue her? Why was he coming back in her life now? What made him think that the Phantom was Souma? That was getting so confusing that she almost didn't hear Hisako asking how she knew these men.

"I met them when I was a child, before meeting you," she finally explained. "Doujima worked for my family and Saiba…" she paused for a few seconds. What could she say about him? "He cooked for me" she finished with a soft smile.

That really brought her back… There was so much more she could say about the man but in the end, that was all she wanted to share with her friend.

.

Jouichiro came in first and opened the door for the ladies. Gin had decided to take the back door to avoid alarming the customers with their special guest. Lucie, the big mouthed waitress, welcomed them with an enthusiastic "Glad to see you came in one piece!" but was soon interrupted by Satoshi who quickly shushed her.

"Well, 'one piece' is quite a big word anyways" the detective replied. "But at least we got the Phantom."

"Good news! The Aldinis will be glad to hear that. Everyone, actually…" he smiled. "Now, shall I take the ladies to their table?" he added, turning to them as he spoke.

"We won't be staying" Arato answered coldly. "We'll just wait for a taxi and leave. Miss Erina doesn't feel good."

"Oh, it pains me to hear that" the head waiter said. "Could it be that something happened on your way?"

He asked that out of habit, but in this case, it was a terrible idea. He realized his mistake as soon as the words escaped his mouth, but it was too late already. Stupid reflexes, he thought as he braced himself for the storm that was to come.

"You know pretty well what happened!" the pinked haired woman exclaimed.

"And you got rescued, so all is fine in the end" Jouichiro grumbled.

"What do you mean 'all is fine'?! If the danger had been averted from the beginning, there would have been no 'rescuing' needed in the first place! Putting Miss Erina in such danger is unacceptable!"

"You could maybe sit down a bit and have a drink while you wait" Satoshi offered in an attempt to calm things down.

It went unnoticed by Arato and the detective, but at least Nakiri followed him to her table and accepted a cup of green tea. He left with her order, wondering how he would announce to the others that despite being here, Erina Nakiri would be leaving with only a cup of tea.

In the meanwhile, the two people left in the entrance finally stopped arguing. Arato joined Erina to her table while Jouichiro decided to see how Gin was doing. However, he was stopped on his way by the critique.

"Won't you stay with us? I think after all this time, you have a lot of explaining to do."

"Well, I'd gladly stay but I'm in the middle of a job so…"

"What kind of job? Aren't you a chef?"

"Oh my… That's quite a long story. But I work as a private detective now."

"Private detective?! Don't tell me you had to stop cooking because of your idiotic son or something! I always knew he was trouble…"

Jouichiro's face became darker as Erina mentioned Souma. He grabbed a chair and sat at the table.

"I guess … you could say it like that" he answered slowly.

"What happened?" the blonde asked, her voice suddenly softer as she understood she said something wrong.

"You see … I haven't seen Souma in years. He had an accident when we were still in Japan. Or more precisely, when he was in Japan and I wasn't…" He paused for a moment, words stuck in his throat. "He disappeared soon after that. I … Gin and I have been looking for him ever since" he finally added, his eyes glued to the table.

Why his best friend from high school quit his job as a General Head Chef to travel around the world with him, looking for Souma, was something Jouichiro would never understand. He knew Gin was a very loyal person, but thinking that he left everything he had in Japan to help him was a bit extreme, especially given how little they'd seen each other after they graduated. Sure, they spent some time together in Paris later on, staying at the _Résidence de l'Étoile Polaire_ , but they didn't really stay in contact after that. But in the end, however little they talked over the years, Gin still rushed by his side as soon as he heard about Souma's disappearance. Whenever he thought about it, Jouichiro felt like he didn't deserve a friend like him. Not like he'd ever let it show of course…

When he finally found it in him to look up, he immediately saw how sorry Erina felt for him. Her pity was even worse than her anger, he found.

"Did you find anything?" she asked softly.

"We thought we had a pretty good lead with this Phantom case. I mean … giving people disgusting food and helping random kitchen aides improve their cooking … that sounded like things he would do. But apparently we were wrong…"

The atmosphere was now getting so heavy it felt like they would have to cut through it with a knife in order to move. Not knowing what else to say and not wanting any more pity from the two women, Jouichiro decided to take his leave.

"I have to see how Gin is doing" he muttered. "Good night, Erina. I guess you know where to find me now."

.

 _[Recording of Megumi Tadokoro's questioning]_

 _G. Doujima: So, Miss Tadokoro, you live in the small room above the Trattoria, right?_

 _M. Tadokoro: Yes. The Aldinis were kind enough to let me use it when I got hired._

 _J. Yukihira: And you seem to really like it here, since apparently you've declined every offer from Marui and Isshiki to stay at the_ Étoile Polaire _._

 _M. Tadokoro: Oh i-it's just convenient, that's all. And I failed Fumio's test once already so…_

 _G. Doujima: Given what we tasted last time, I really think you would be accepted immediately if you tried now._

 _M. Tadokoro: You think? B-but it's fine, really. I just … think I'll stay here for now._

 _J. Yukihira: Isn't it a bit lonely at night?_

 _M. Tadokoro: I'm fine with it. I'm so busy during the day that I go to bed quite early._

 _J. Yukihira: Mr. Isshiki reported that he sometimes heard strange noises coming from the attic though. Don't you hear them too?_

 _M. Tadokoro: Y-yes. It was a bit scary at first but I got used to it. And my house in Japan was also noisy, so…_

 _G. Doujima: Would you say they're human noises?_

 _M. Tadokoro: M-maybe. I don't know, really. I try not to think about it. Plus, I sleep with earplugs now, so I don't hear them anymore._

 _J. Yukihira: So you never tried to investigate them?_

 _M. Tadokoro: No. I thought … that must sound silly, but I thought it was better not to know._

 _G. Doujima: We can't blame you for that. People usually aren't the bravest in the middle of the night. And you have never seen the Phantom either?_

 _M. Tadokoro: I tend to stay in my room at night, so no._

 _J. Yukihira: Do you think he might live here?_

 _M. Tadokoro: I … I don't know. Maybe. Maybe he's the one making those noises. But there's no way to prove it so… I-I'm so sorry I can't help you more but I swear I have no idea about it!_

 _J. Yukihira: [sigh] It's fine. Is there anything else you'd like to share with us?_

 _M. Tadokoro: … [uncomfortable shifting] There's… The reason… N-no. It's nothing._

 _J. Yukihira: Any information can be crucial._

 _M. Tadokoro: No, it really is nothing. I was thinking about something else! N-now if we're done I … think I'll leave. Today is my day off and there's a lot I want to do before it gets too dark!_

 _G. Doujima: Fine. You are free to leave. But if you remember anything or find something that could help, please tell us._

 _M. Tadokoro: Sure!_

 _[End of the record]_

 _._

Megumi couldn't believe what was happening. Surely, that was only a dream, right? How could … the Phantom…

How come he didn't recognize her?

There was something wrong. She could feel it from the moment she laid eyes on the stranger Mr. Doujima brought back with him. Even the voice wasn't right! Nor was the food. She (almost) tried. There must be a mistake somewhere, she was sure of it!

But could she really say it to the others? Tell the truth about how she was just a fraud? How she lied to everyone for all this time? Megumi's scrubbing slowed down without her realizing it, until she stopped completely. She had to do something. But what?

She shook her head and went back to cleaning the kitchen, only to start slowing down again after a few minutes.

"You can leave the rest of the cleaning to us if you're really tired" Takumi offered nicely. "It's been quite a night after all."

That brought her back to reality once again and she did her best to focus on finishing her work after declining politely. She then said goodbye to everyone, closed the restaurant from the inside and went to her room, still trying to make a decision.

She thought she had to talk to the detectives as she entered the shower. She gave up on the idea when she got out, but changed her mind as she brushed her teeth. She fell heavily on her bed, wondering what she would say anyway.

" _I think you got the wrong person! I know the Phantom and it's not him! It can't be him! I … I refuse to accept that!"_

She smiled bitterly. When did she start feeling like she knew that strange voice in her room that talked to her through the pipelines? Or even that dark shape that helped her at night, providing her with new ideas and…

It had started soon after she moved in the Trattoria. Or more precisely, soon after she failed Fumio's test to enter the _Résidence de l'Étoile polaire_. Of course she was terrified, at first. But after a while, the Phantom managed to convince her that he wanted to help her, and he started giving her advice. Cooking lessons, even. She had no idea why he would do that for her. Not that he did it for free, of course…

There was a price for his help, actually. A really high price even, although she sometimes felt like it wasn't much given all the progress she made. But one thing was for sure: she had probably tasted way more of the Phantom's awful dishes than all of his other victims put together.

She shivered as she remembered the taste. That was something she didn't miss. It was different every time, but always equally disgusting. And there was a distinctive style, apparently. Because what the fake Phantom had cooked … well, she could tell without even trying (thank God) that it wasn't the same.

But maybe she was wrong? Maybe she just … didn't want to believe that the Phantom was the person she saw earlier that evening? Still … he said he didn't want to hurt Erina, right? He was a horrible person on many aspects but he never lied to her before. Or maybe he did from the very beginning and she was just too stupid to notice.

Megumi sighed as she turned off the light and went to bed. Whether the Phantom the detectives caught was a fake or not, she should probably talk to them. And admit that the dishes she made weren't her own, but the ones the Phantom – the _real_ Phantom – had showed her during the night. She could already imagine everyone's disappointed expression. Takumi would probably say something like:

"I thought you were a good chef. I even chose you as a rival and you lied to us all! Get out of my kitchen and don't come back!"

She whimpered at the thought. She would deserve it though. But there was one thing that still made her hesitate…

" _Don't ever mention me to anyone."_

That was one of the first things the Phantom had told her. And the last. She promised both times. She even straight out lied to the detectives when they questioned her! So maybe … maybe before telling the truth, she should try talking to him? At least she would know right away if there was a second Phantom or not…

She turned on her table lamp and started calling him. But nobody came.

She should have expected that, she thought with a sigh. She kept on trying for a while, even going as far as going back to the kitchen where he hanged out sometimes. There was still no answer and she gave up after a while. Of course he wouldn't come. They weren't exactly on good terms last time they talked…

It was right after Arato's visit. She was so mad at him for putting the Trattoria in danger. She tried to explain the situation calmly at first, but he didn't seem to care about her arguments. He simply said that he had nothing against this place and didn't want it to close down. But in the end, she couldn't even make him promise that he wouldn't go anywhere near Erina. So she declared that from now on she wouldn't listen to him and do things by herself. And she did.

It wasn't hard at all actually, since the Phantom stopped coming to her after that night. She got left on her own. And as expected, everyone noticed how her cooking lost in quality. But she still managed to survive, day by day, so maybe … just maybe she was good enough now? And since she had no reason to stay, now that there was no Phantom or secret cooking lessons … maybe she could try and take Fumio's test again?

But first, she had to find a way to contact the Phantom. She couldn't tell the truth without having talked to him first, and she wouldn't go anywhere until the whole issue was solved!

She fell asleep as soon as she came to this decision.

.

It was a pretty gloomy afternoon and Takumi had decided to try a new recipe while the restaurant was empty. Megumi was away for the day and Isami was at a neighboring café, paying a courtesy visit to the owners. The silence reigning in the kitchen and in the Trattoria in general was something the chef appreciated. It was nice, once in a while…

As he checked the ingredients, he realized that he needed a new bottle of wine. And since his brother wasn't around, it meant that he had to go grab it in the cellar by himself. He sighed. It wasn't that he was scared of course, but the room was so dark and cold… Plus, he had pretty bad memories from his childhood – mostly pranks from his brother and cousins – so even now, he tried to avoid going there as much as possible. It was his twin's place more than his own, anyway. Takumi reigned over the kitchen and Isami over the cellar. They were a bit like those ancient Roman gods, in a way…

It didn't look like it, but their cellar was incredibly large. It had an arched ceiling, lots of bottles stacked everywhere in an organization so complicated that only the sommelier could find his way around it and, strangely, an arch on the left leading to an empty room no one ever used. It hadn't changed one bit since the last time he went there months ago.

Takumi went downstairs carefully and found a few bottles in the place dedicated to cooking wines – the only one he could recognize in this apparent mess, since his brother left them there especially for him. He was reaching for one when he heard noises coming from the empty room. The chef didn't lose time to wonder if it was only his imagination and ran directly toward it at full speed. The building was a bit old and his biggest fear was to find rats or other disgusting creatures that would threaten his lovely, perfectly clean kitchen. He had to be sure.

He felt his foot hitting something the moment he crossed the arch. He lost balance and flailed madly to regain it as he took several steps forward. He finally hit the wall in front of him, felt the rocks beneath his hands move a bit and suddenly, the floor itself was in motion.

Before he could understand what was happening, he found himself on the other side. Surprised, he fell back and roughly hit the ground as he looked at the wall turning back in place. He stared at it silently for a few seconds.

"Whaaaat?!" he eventually asked to no one in particular, although he kind of hoped someone would give him an explanation.

Did he really just …? Was there really …? Did the wall …? But that was _crazy_!

He stayed on the ground for a moment, unable to process what had just happened. Then, he stood up and touched the wall hesitantly. It didn't move, but it felt quite real under his hand. Cold, rough, slightly dusty… A wall. A real wall. Hiding a secret passage.

How was it even possible?! He practically _grew up_ in this place! His brother went there almost every day! His cousins and him spent _days_ playing there when they were kids! And they were the second generation of Aldinis working here! How come no one ever noticed or told them about it?!

He shook his head and tried to find a way to go back to the cellar, which proved to be way harder than leaving it. The room – the _corridor_ as he later noticed – was quite dark and he couldn't remember how he activated the mechanism in the first place. He had no time to feel frustrated by it however, because he suddenly heard noises behind him.

He turned around swiftly to see a flickering light in the distance. Unsure what else to do, he decided to follow it. "Could it be the Phantom?" he wondered. That would explain why they couldn't find him before. But the Phantom was with the detectives at the moment, right? He couldn't be there without them knowing it. Or did he escape?

Takumi found himself at an intersection and as he turned his head to see where the light was coming from, he found himself right in front of a masked man. The stranger was holding an electric version of an old fashioned lantern, had long dark clothes and seemed to be pulling some kind of cart. The Phantom. So it was really him!

He ran away before Takumi could stop him, and the blonde ran after him without hesitation. He didn't know why the Phantom was there but he couldn't let him go that easily. His legs started to hurt quickly and he regretted not being sportier. He still kept going but soon realized that he had lost the other man.

He stopped, breathing heavily, and was ready to give up when he heard a crashing noise coming from his left. He rushed toward it, ignoring the pain coming from his undertrained body and the unpleasant metallic and sour taste in his mouth, until he arrived in a huge, dimly lit room. Somehow, its smell was completely different from what he would have expected. Instead of rock, dust and humidity, it faintly smelled like … food? And nice food too, he soon realized.

There was a small shack in the far corner and what looked like an open air kitchen next to it. Really, he thought, a _kitchen_?! What was a kitchen doing here? He must be dreaming. Maybe he hit his head when he fell in the cellar and…

No. Deep down, he knew this was real.

He still came closer to make sure he wasn't going mad, but he was stopped by a voice behind him.

"Don't you know it's rude to come in people's place without having been invited? And I'm pretty sure it's illegal, too."

Takumi turned around swiftly. The Phantom was right in front of him, and though he couldn't see his expression under the white mask he was wearing, the chef was certain of one thing: this was his lair, and he didn't look pleased to see him there.

* * *

Finally! I can't believe it took me six whole chapters to make these two meet… So for those who are here for the Soutaku, rejoice!

See ya!


	6. It's time to duel!

Hello lovelies! Am I the only one wondering where time goes these days? Because really, I don't know. If you find my time, please call.

As for yours, I hope you enjoy spending it reading this chapter!

* * *

 **Chapter 6: It's time to d-d-duel!**

How the Phantom and he came from staring each other defiantly to cooking aggressively was something Takumi couldn't really explain. But however it happened, he knew he couldn't lose to that stranger. His pride as a chef was the only thing at stake, but that was way more important than anything else!

He put everything he had in his first dish. He wasn't used to the place so he had a hard time finding everything he needed, but despite these issues, he still managed to present a creation he was quite proud of. And yet…

He lost.

His opponent and he were the only judges here, but Takumi couldn't deny that the other dish was better. That took him by surprise. How long had it been since he lost to someone in a cooking contest? He fell completely silent for a few minutes, trying to process the information. He savored the bitter taste of defeat, and let it sink for a moment, focusing on how he refused to feel it again.

When the Phantom asked him what was going on, he asked for a rematch. His rival gladly accepted and they decided to go for an egg dish. Takumi lost again and hated it as much as the first time. Maybe even more. But he was closer this time, he could feel it! Next time, he thought. Next time would be the one.

He finally won with his third dish, when they both cooked duck. And the fourth, when they went for desserts. He won that one by a landslide, actually. For the whole time, even before his two consecutive victories, he couldn't stop smiling. When was the last time he had that much fun cooking? It felt like it was ages ago. And maybe it was, in a way…

After that, Takumi started feeling like he had finally proven his superiority. But that was only until the fifth match came and they couldn't decide on a winner.

This small pause in their erratic cooking gave him time to really think about the Phantom's style, and he was soon hit by how familiar it tasted. It was … flamboyant. Almost exactly like Megumi's cooking when her talent started to shine! He took another bite to make sure he wasn't making it up, but that only confirmed his impression. He couldn't believe he didn't notice it earlier!

He smiled softly. He didn't realize until now how much he had _missed_ that taste. Megumi's current style was great as well, of course, but this…

"I guess my dish is better, since you're having some more" the Phantom stated with a smug grin. He was now wearing a different mask that showed his mouth, allowing him to taste the food.

"What? No way! I was just … checking on something."

"You mean how awesome my cooking is? Don't be shy, you can say it."

"Hey … Do you know Megumi Tadokoro, by any chance?"

"Tadokoro? Sure, I cooked with her for some time. Then she became angry at me for some reason so I stopped seeing her. How is she doing?"

"So it was you" Takumi stated, completely ignoring the last question. "You've been teaching her, and that's why her cooking tasted so much like yours for some time!"

"That's right. I told her what to cook at first. She really lacked self-confidence, and I was looking for a way to challenge you at the time. But she doesn't seem to need me anymore… Which is fine since you're here now!"

Takumi didn't know what to answer to that, so they both fell silent for a moment. That was a lot of information to process for the blonde, but the other didn't give him time to dwell on it as he bragged:

"Now admit it! I've won this one!"

"Absolutely not! Mine is obviously way better!"

They could have argued like that for hours, but they were soon interrupted by a knocking noise. Startled, Takumi turned to see what was happening and noticed a small wooden door on the wall next to him. But they were somewhere underground, right? So who else could be here beside them? The situation started to look dangerously like a horror movie, but the Phantom didn't seem surprised in any way.

He went to the door and opened it like everything was perfectly normal. However, in Takumi's eyes, the scene that followed was completely surreal. The Phantom greeted the people behind the door like old friends, and they talked to him like finding an underground kitchen and two people in it, one of them wearing an elegant white mask, was the most natural thing in the world. Suddenly, the man who seemed the most familiar with the Phantom noticed him and said:

"Hey Souma, I see you have a guest! I've never seen him before. Where did you find him?"

"Takumi? He got lost underground. I don't even know how he got here! Not like I really asked though… But we're having so much fun cooking right now!"

"Did you cook all of this for him?"

"Partly, yes! We were having a contest. And we can't decide on a winner, actually… Would you guys like to be the jury?" the Phantom (Souma?) asked after a small pause.

The three newcomers accepted excitedly. As they tasted the dishes, Takumi started feeling a nervousness he hadn't experienced in years. He had almost missed that. Almost. He watched them expectantly, waiting for their reaction.

All of them agreed on two things: both dishes were delicious and Souma had really outdone himself this time. Then, they started a heated debate to decide which one was the best. One was strongly on the Phantom's side, another was adamant that Takumi's was the best and the last one just couldn't make up his mind and kept tasting both dishes, hoping to find the one he preferred. He finally declared Souma the winner, earning a death glare from the Takumi-supporter.

Takumi's eyes flashed with anger at the result. How could he lose in front of complete strangers like that?! He couldn't accept it.

"I want a rematch!" he blurted.

"Sure! But can't we do that later? We have so much food already and I will soon run out of ingredients if we keep going like that."

He accepted with a resigned sigh. He crossed his arms, pouting, and watched as the Phantom started talking with the three others. Apparently they were going to some kind of party and wanted to invite him.

"Your friend can come too, of course" one of them added.

However, the other politely declined and the strangers didn't insist. Instead, they offered to buy some of the food the two of them had cooked all afternoon. The Phantom didn't sound surprised by that and Takumi assumed it wasn't new. It was probably why they came here in the first place, he realized. But when did this literal underground business start? And where did these people come from? He wondered. The Phantom's voice interrupted his musings as he asked:

"They want to take some of the dishes you cooked. It is okay?"

"Oh, sure" he answered. "I used your ingredients after all. And we can't eat all of this by ourselves."

It didn't occur to him that there were people waiting for him outside. Nor that he usually made them pay for his dishes instead of just giving them away. The only thing on his mind at that moment was how he lost against another cook. And how he would beat him next time. And the next. How he wouldn't stop until he had proven his superiority. At that moment, nothing else mattered to him.

After the others left, Takumi and the Phantom – Souma, he reminded himself; the Phantom's name was Souma – cleaned the kitchen and decided to eat some of their leftovers.

"We have to make room for later, right?" the redhead stated.

Thinking about it, Takumi found it almost disappointing that his hair wasn't actually on fire like Satoshi said, but he could imagine how a certain lighting could make it look like it was. However, the more he looked at him, the less strange he found him. Past the striking first impression left by his dark clothes, white mask and bright red hair that made him look like a supernatural being, he was behaving in such a casual way that it ended up looking natural. Even the mask didn't shock him anymore. Especially the one he was wearing right now. It looked so elegant that Takumi had no doubt it wasn't just a cheap thing. It seemed perfectly adjusted and the red pattern fit so perfectly with its owner that he had no doubts it was custom made. As to why he was wearing it in the first place, he really couldn't tell.

The blonde chef asked lots of questions during their dinner, and found out that the mysterious Phantom who terrorized the neighborhood was actually quite … normal. His father taught him how to cook, and then he picked up bits here and there. He'd been around for quite a while now, though he couldn't tell how long exactly. He frequently met people underground and they sometimes bought his food or brought him ingredients. That was where the duck came from, for instance. The kitchen and the whole installation was already there when he arrived, and he had no idea who put it here. Souma was pretty open on most things, but there were two subjects he avoided: how he came to live here in the first place and why he was wearing a mask.

In a way, Takumi didn't care about that. He was all about cooking and somehow, he felt like knowing his rival's style would eventually tell him everything about him. For instance, tasting his dishes was enough to understand how he could find his situation so perfectly normal. His ideas, his ingredients, the way he cooked them … everything was practically screaming how much of a random, adaptable person he was. There were other bits of his personality discarded here and there in his dishes, and in Takumi's opinion, they told more about him than a lengthy conversation. But at the same time … he found it quite frustrating not to be able to see his expressions.

.

 _The last real defeat Takumi suffered was against a man called Subaru Mimasaka. He called himself a traveling chef but in the blonde's mind, he clearly didn't deserve the title. As he learned later, he had a habit of traveling around the world and challenging various chefs, always claiming something they treasured when he won._

 _When he first met him, Takumi had never heard about any of this. Not that it would have changed anything, though. Mimasaka came to the Trattoria one day, before the opening, and went right to the kitchen without being noticed. It happened long before Megumi's arrival and the chef was alone there. Then, he did two of the things Takumi hated the most: messing with his kitchen and insulting Isami. Even now, just thinking about it was enough to make him furious. The mere sight of that stranger shamelessly coming here and touching his utensils filled him with anger. He gripped his knife so hard it hurt and hissed:_

" _Who are you and what are you doing in my kitchen?"_

" _I'm Subaru Mimasaka, and I'm just checking around. It's a nice kitchen you have…" he answered, casually looking at a spoon._

 _Takumi repressed an indignant "Don't touch that!". It was probably what the other wanted, and he wasn't going to fall for that. He tried to calm down and said:_

" _So it's you, right? I know someone has been stalking us for the past few days… Why are you showing up now?"_

" _I knew no one would be around at this time. The waiters usually come later, your aide is sick and your brother is always in the cellar at that hour."_

 _The accuracy of his information sent cold shivers down the blonde's spine. How much did he know about them already? Yet, he let none of his concerns show as he asked:_

" _What do you want?"_

" _Talking about your twin, don't you feel sad that he's such a failure? I mean, it's so obvious that even he realized he had to give up on cooking…"_

 _And he went on and on, or he probably would have if Takumi had the patience to listen to his speech. He didn't. Knowing the other was taunting him was a thing, but he had his limits and Isami was one of them._

 _How the situation escalated to a semi-official cooking challenge, he couldn't remember. The terms were simple: they both had to prepare a cake of their choice and present it to a jury whose members they would both choose. If Takumi won, Mimasaka had to apologize to Isami and never come near them or the Trattoria again. If Mimasaka won, he would take away his precious_ mezzaluna _._

 _Long story short, his opponent managed to guess which dish he would choose and presented an improved version of it. Worse, Takumi didn't bring emergency ingredients to the challenge, and he saw his defeat coming without a single chance of fighting back. He lost completely, and it was probably the cruelest defeat he ever experienced. The helplessness he felt when he found out what was happening, the horrible realization that it was too late to change his recipe and that there was nothing he could do to prevent his incoming fall … that was a pretty traumatizing memory on many aspects. Even the small last minute changes he managed to make had been planned!_

 _It happened years ago, and even after all this time, he still felt terrible every time he was reminded of it._

.

The next … indefinite amount of time that followed Takumi's encounter with the Phantom was full of new challenges, passionate conversations about food, a lot to learn and no time to worry about what was happening outside of the underground kitchen. The only thing that really bothered him was his increasing curiosity about what Souma was hiding under his mask. After a night of weird dreams – the worst being the one where his rival's face was only a big slice of pizza with pinapple, anchovies and pickled plums – he decided that it was time to do something about it.

Knowing that asking nicely would bring him nowhere, Takumi decided to use a subtler approach. Thus, when Souma offered another challenge, he asked instead:

"Don't you think it would be more exciting if we put something at stake?"

"Sure!" the other agreed with a radiant smile (the only thing Takumi could see from his face, which was a good start but still not enough). "Do you have an idea?"

Takumi took a deep breath, silenced the little voice telling him that this kind of curiosity was inappropriate and declared:

"If I win, I want to see your face."

"No."

The answer was quick and final. But now that he had brought up the topic, the blonde wasn't going to let it go so easily.

"If I win three times?" he offered.

"I said no. Even ten victories on your side won't be enough for that."

"So you admit that I can easily win ten times!"

"What? No! From today on, I won't let you win at all!"

They bargained for a while and almost found a compromise when Souma suddenly changed the subject and asked:

"By the way, what do I get when _I_ win?"

"You mean _if_ you win!" Takumi countered. "I don't know, what do you want?"

Souma thought about it for a few seconds and declared with a mischievous smile:

"I want a kiss."

"Okay," Takumi answered without thinking. He then took time to process the information and asked "Wait. You want what?"

"A kiss. I want a kiss for each victory."

Takumi's face reddened gradually, quickly reaching the color of Souma's hair. As for his mind, it managed to be blank, yet boiling at the same time. He was so in shock that he didn't notice Souma's snickers. A kiss… Was the Phantom seriously asking for a kiss?

"You're not serious."

"I am."

Looking at him, there was no way to deny it. The other wasn't joking. Takumi remained silent for a while and seriously considered refusing. However, the more he thought about it, the more he realized that he had nothing else to offer. Nothing that he could think of right now, at least. So it was either that, or giving up on his idea. Also, a kiss wasn't that much, right? People did it all the time! He let out a nervous sigh and then announced in a calm and confident voice (or so he hoped):

"Okay then. If I win five times, you'll take off your mask. And every time you win, you'll get a k… kiss."

 _What am I doing?_ He wondered, starting to hope that the other would refuse.

"Ten times," Souma amended.

"No way."

"Five in a row."

"That's even worse! Three in a row and no more!"

"Let's say five times, of which three in a row."

"Fine!" Takumi accepted grudgingly.

And after that, their cooking challenges suddenly gained a whole new kind of importance.

.

 _For some people, changes take time. They are sometimes so slow they can go unnoticed for years. They are an accumulation of little things that don't mean much when taken separately, and yet they transform your whole life. It's easy not to see it at first until one day, you look back on your life and realize that nothing is the way it used to be. Takumi's loss of interest for cooking was a good example of that._

 _In Souma's case however, most changes were sudden and massive. The day that changed his whole life was no exception._

 _He was riding his scooter in Tokyo, going back from the supermarket. He had just bought ingredients for a new dish he wanted to try, but as he rode back to the restaurant, he suddenly realized that he forgot something._

 _Milk._

 _For some reason, he still remembered that detail. As for what happened after that … it wasn't as clear. He could recall that he decided to go get some, turned and then… There was a car going too fast or something. The road was clear and suddenly, there was that car rushing at him full speed. After that, everything went black._

 _Souma couldn't even remember how long ago it happened…_

.

Takumi put everything he had in that chocolate _soufflé_. As he had soon noticed, the Phantom's weakness seemed to be desserts and although he had taught him a few tricks already, he knew he was still superior. A proof of that was the redhead's answer to the challenge: his French dish with chocolate was a _bœuf bourguignon_.

The sauce had a rich flavor and the meat was almost melting in his mouth. Chocolate was used at its best, as it balanced the whole dish and deepened its taste. It was delicious, really, like petting a chocolate cow in a sunny field. However…

"Okay, you win" Souma admitted bitterly.

Surprised, Takumi almost choked on his bite. He expected more resistance for his first victory. But on the other hand, he was really proud of his own dish. He could always count on desserts.

"You really have to teach me more about baking!" the redhead added with a smile, as if his current defeat meant nothing to him. "I don't usually eat sweet things so I've never really learned how to cook them…"

"Sure! You're getting better at it though."

"Yeah, I'm sure I'll beat you soon!"

"Ha! You wish!" Takumi bragged. "But your dish was awesome as well. It was a very clever use of chocolate."

"And yet it wasn't enough. I never thought I'd lose to a cake."

" _Soufflé_ is an art. Really, it takes a lot of practice to keep it puffy like that."

"Stop praising yourself so much. You won't win next time!"

"We'll see about that!"

Takumi 1 – Souma 0. _Kiss avoided!_ The blonde thought triumphantly. What a relief!

* * *

So I couldn't help putting Mimasaka in the story...

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it. See you in two weeks!


	7. Kiss the cook

Hi everyone! Me again. New chapter. More Soutaku. Yaaay.

Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 7: Kiss the cook!**

" _Do you really think he'll ever be able to live a normal life again? I mean, his face has been quite damaged…"_

" _Don't be like that Sachiko. I'm sure he'll be fine."_

" _You clearly haven't seen it! He looks like Quasimodo!"_

" _But it'll probably get better over time. And the doctors even said he'll be able to leave soon, so…"_

" _You're way too optimistic."_

 _This muffled conversation was the first thing Souma heard when he woke up. Everything hurt, even parts of his body he didn't know existed. He tried to open his eyes, but the room was too brightly lit for him. He blinked a few times and after several attempts, he finally managed to keep them open long enough to see where he was. A hospital room. He should have known by the smell. He'd always hated that smell…_

 _Were these two women talking about him? He wondered. Given the excruciating pain coming from his face, it was very likely. He gathered what little strength he had to raise an arm and touch it. Bandages. His whole head was covered in bandages, and so was most of his body, apparently. He let his arm fall back heavily. That simple move had left him completely exhausted. He closed his eyes and went back to sleep._

 _As he found out later on, when the doctor examined him, he'd been very lucky. He had no major injury, so he would be able to leave in a week or two, depending on how fast he recovered. He tried to smile that day, and it hurt terribly. He then wanted to ask about his face, but the pain was even worse. He gave up and just grunted in what he hoped would be interpreted as an approving way._

 _No one ever told him about how he looked like under the bandages. Not the doctors, not the nurses who changed it, not the people who came to visit him._

 _His father wasn't there at the time. He'd been called in another country a few weeks earlier and couldn't leave as easily as he wanted to. Souma told him not to bother, since he'd probably be out of the hospital before he could come back to Japan. His dad still said he would do his best to come as fast as possible. But he never saw him again._

 _Why Souma decided to leave everything he knew and hide from the world, he didn't know himself. Was it the grimace of one of the younger nurse every time she changed her bandage? Was it the indifferent, nurse-y expression of the older ones? Or did he just decide that it was time for him to leave and see new things? Whatever the reason was, it didn't matter in the end. The result was the same: he left one day._

 _Truth be told, he didn't really run away from the hospital. He just waited until they let him out, walked away, withdrew all the money he had and decided to travel for a while, so that no one could find him. He would try and find a place where he could live in the shadows, far from society._

 _He travelled up north by bus, then took a ferry to Vladivostok and paid a ticket for the Trans-Siberian. He didn't know if he wanted to stop somewhere along the line or go all the way to Moscow at once, so he decided to first stop at Lake Baikal and maybe stay there for a while, until he knew more precisely what he was going to do._

 _That was the beginning of a long and quite eventful journey._

.

The balance of this dish was perfect. Takumi was really proud of his own, sure but … he had to admit that it was nothing compared to what the Phantom had to offer.

The theme was "salad with fruits" and he decided to go for something simple with apple, cheese and walnuts. He put a few tricks in the sauce and he was sure he had a winning dish but then… Each bite of Souma's green mango salad made him shiver with pleasure. The mango's taste fit perfectly with the mint leafs' and soy beans' freshness, and the peanuts added a crunchiness that was more than welcome. Everything was so perfectly balanced that Takumi couldn't imagine a better answer for the challenge.

"Okay, you win this time" he finally admitted, taking another bite.

"Hah! I knew you wouldn't resist!" the other grinned. "And now, for my prize…"

Takumi almost choked at the words. He had been so much into the food that he had completely forgotten about what would happen if he lost. He struggled to swallow his bite and started coughing uncontrollably. He grabbed the glass of water Souma gave him with a thankful smile and tried to regain his composure after emptying it. Needless to say he failed.

Was he really going to kiss the Phantom? More importantly, was it really how he was going to have his first kiss?! Well, not really his _first_ kiss since that girl once kissed him without warning back in high school but … that one didn't really count. Thinking about it, he could always act like the one that was lying ahead wouldn't count either, but since he accepted the terms of the challenge, he guessed that he would reach a whole new level of denial if he did…

He looked at Souma nervously and realized with horror that he was shaking. As expected, the other noticed and couldn't help teasing him.

"Oh, come on. Don't tell me it's your first…"

"Sh-shut up! Why would you even ask for that in the first place?"

"It seemed fun. And with the way you're reacting right now, let me tell you it's completely worth it!"

"Okay, you've had your fun," Takumi muttered bitterly. "What now?"

"Now we kiss!" Souma replied with a bright smile.

The blonde became even redder, if it was even possible. He watched with horror as the other came dangerously close. But there was nothing he could do, right? After all, he did accept the terms. And also, maybe it wouldn't be that bad. He thought back on the taste of the Phantom's dishes, the passion and creativity he could feel in each bite, and the memory somehow soothed him. By the time Souma grabbed his chin, he'd almost calmed down. And as their lips came closer, he even found himself closing his eyes.

The contact was brief. So brief that Takumi didn't even have time to process the information. And yet, when he opened his eyes, he felt a faint taste of dark chocolate fill his mouth. His eyes met the Phantom's as he took a step back, saying:

"See? It wasn't that terrible after all."

And he was right, it wasn't. But he sure wasn't going to admit it, so he declared instead:

"Well, I hope you enjoyed it because you're definitely not getting another one!"

As he turned away to do the dishes, Takumi wondered where the chocolate taste came from. These ghost tastes happened sometimes, whenever he felt something strong – or whenever he took painkillers, apparently. They were really specific but each feeling had its own taste. For instance, extreme joy was always linked to the taste of grape. And bitterness was, well … bitter. Undercooked endive bitter, to be precise. He didn't know what dark chocolate meant though, but it really surprised him as he never imagined a simple kiss would be strong enough to provoke such a reaction. A simple … kiss…

He froze at the memory of what just happened and had to fight the urge of hiding his face with his hands, as they were covered in dirty water and foam. He took a deep breath and tried to think about something else. It would be fine anyway, he reasoned. He would win next time.

.

 _In a way, Souma's fate was decided when he met Sergei in the train. He was a shady, taciturn Russian sleeping in a bed next to his. He barely left the compartment and for the whole journey, Souma didn't see him eat once. He heard his stomach grumble a couple of times, but the man didn't do anything about it._

 _The reason for it was quite simple, and Souma found it a few hours before he reached his destination: he didn't like the food, and would rather starve than eat anything that didn't meet his standards. The Japanese took it as a challenge, and since the man was also planning to leave at Irkutsk, he seized the opportunity and cooked something for him._

 _Sergei loved it. He loved it so much that he offered Souma to accompany him to Moscow and meet his boss, a well-known gourmet who was especially fond of Japanese cuisine. He was always looking for the best chefs he could find, so he would probably be very interested in him._

 _Since he had no other plan, Souma gladly accepted. He was still wearing his bandages at the time, and his only condition was that he would never have to show his face. His demand was accepted without a second thought and he was even offered a nice mask to conceal it. He got hired as a special cook in a huge household, and the salary was better than anything he could have expected in a restaurant. His employer also had a condition, however: Souma should never get involved in his business, or try to know more about it. But the newly appointed chef didn't care as long as he could cook, so it never turned into an issue._

 _All in all, Souma had a very pleasant time in Russia. His only regret was maybe that his boss didn't care about Russian cuisine at all, so he never got to learn much about it…_

.

Both cooks looked at their ingredients thoughtfully. Given what they had left, they were starting to run out of ideas.

"Maybe I should go grab some more," Souma said in a way that made it clear he didn't want to go anywhere.

"Yeah, that would be an idea I guess," Takumi replied in an unconvinced tone, making it obvious that he didn't want the other to leave anyway. "Or maybe we could try making something with the buckwheat flour that girl brought you recently?"

"Hmmm, why not…"

They fell silent for a while, and it would have lasted a lot more if they hadn't been disrupted by a shy knock on the door.

The pattern sounded quite peculiar and given the way Souma smiled when he heard it, it seemed that it belonged to someone special. As he opened the door to greet his guest, Takumi peeped over his shoulder to find a tiny old man looking at him curiously through thick glasses. His clothes had probably been nice and expansive once, but they were now old and slightly too big for him, making him seem even smaller and skinnier than he already was. However, what really grabbed Takumi's attention was the package he was carrying. Middle-sized and covered in journal, it really looked like food and the blonde was curious about what was inside.

"Who is your friend over there?" the old man asked eventually.

"His name is Takumi. He's been staying here for a while. We're having cooking contests."

"Well, nice to meet you, young man" he greeted as he gave him his hand. "My name is Emile, I live around here."

Takumi took it, wondering how many people were actually living underground like this. Thinking about it made him feel like he didn't know his own hometown. It was like there was a whole city with its own economy buried right under the French capital.

He listened with interest as Souma explained him briefly that Emile used to be a doctor who lost everything after his wife ran away with another man and all of their money. Despite his poor condition, he was known as a gourmet in the area and knew a lot about food.

"By the way," he added as he turned to the old man "would you like to be our judge for the next match? …once we find our theme, that is."

Emile gave them a bright smile and showed his package, saying joyfully:

"I have something for you then! I found some rabbit today. I was going to use it myself, but then I thought you'd like to cook it. You know I'm always happy to share a nice meal with you."

"That's perfect!" Souma exclaimed excitedly.

He then turned to Takumi with a smile and asked:

"What do you think?"

As soon as he'd heard the word "rabbit", the blonde had started thinking about how he could cook it; so obviously, he was quick to accept this unexpected ingredient. He checked around the kitchen to make sure he had everything he needed for his dish and put himself to work immediately. Souma took more time to think, but soon started his own preparations.

While they were both cooking, Emile walked around them and looked at what they were doing, giving an approving nod here and there.

Despite beginning after him, Souma's dish was finished first. He had quickly cooked the rabbit meat in the pan before putting it in tin foil with various herbs, some baby potatoes and a trickle of olive oil. As he took it out of the oven, Takumi realized that despite the apparent simplicity of the dish, it was actually the work of a great chef. He opened the papillote he was handed and was soon overwhelmed with the heavenly smell of rabbit mixed with thyme and rosemary. He felt the urge to eat it immediately, but decided to wait until he saw the judge's reaction. Resisting was way harder than it should have been, though.

The old man closed his eyes as he took the first bite, to better taste it. A blissful smile appeared on his face, and Takumi thought it was time to check on his own creation before he tried the other.

It turned out it was ready, but he still chose to wait a bit before serving it, giving Emile some time to taste the first dish properly. He then turned his attention back to his own plate and decided to try it himself. The meat was so tender he didn't need a knife at all. It tasted like Heaven. Given the freshness of the herbs, their strong taste could have overwhelmed that of the meat, but it only magnified it. Everything was clear, soft and simple, yet thyme and rosemary gave it a lightness that made him want more.

He heard Emile explain this feeling, using the words Takumi would have never found to describe it. Then, the chef's mind went back to the competition, and he realized that despite trusting his recipe, he would have a hard time winning. He still served the two portions with confidence, and waited for the two men to eat.

"It's Rabbit Cacciatore, right?" Emile asked.

"Yes. It's a typical dish in Tuscany, where my family is from."

The old man smiled softly, as if remembering things from a distant past, and whispered:

"I haven't had traditional Italian food for so long…"

He then took a bite but somehow, Takumi's gaze irrepressibly turned to Souma. He couldn't see his expression because of the mask, but that didn't bother him. He could see the other was smiling and seemed to enjoy it greatly. Somehow, his reaction made him even prouder than Emile's comment about the interesting taste brought by the tomatoes and the way the meat took a bit of the sauce's flavor without losing its specificity.

"It's really hard to choose between these two dishes," the old man concluded. "Both of them are completely different and stand out in their own way. But since I really have to do it…" he paused and seemed to hesitate for a moment. He opened his mouth a few times, ready to speak, but then stopped. However, he seemed sure of his decision when he declared "I'd say Souma wins."

Takumi's proud smile completely disappeared and Souma started grinning happily.

"This rabbit Cacciatore was excellent, of course, but the rabbit en papillote really preserved the meat's delicate taste while keeping all of its tenderness."

At least the redhead had the delicacy not to ask for his reward before Emile left…

Takumi really liked the old man and was glad to have met such an interesting character, especially since he had such an extensive knowledge about food. He clearly knew what he was talking about and his comments were always on point. The blonde's only regret was that he had to lose in front of him. That was the second time he lost when strangers were there and though his victory count was really close to Souma's, he hated the idea that he would seem inferior to him in these people's eyes. He couldn't keep losing like that. He had to pull himself together and finally settle the score with his rival.

As soon as he closed the door on Emile, said rival turned to him with the same smug grin he had last time and walked to him declaring:

"Sooo Takumi… Seems you owe me another kiss!"

The blonde looked away, muttering something even he couldn't understand as he was too busy feeling his blood rushing to his cheeks and hating it dearly.

"Also," Souma added without losing his smile, "you're not getting away with a simple peck on the lips this time."

It took Takumi a few seconds to understand what the other meant and when he did, he started stepping back until he was blocked by the counter. He tried to complain but words refused to come out. They soon refused to come at all, leaving his mind completely blank. The Phantom had him trapped before he could say anything, but instead of diving on his lips like the blonde expected, he just looked at him patiently.

His hands rested on the counter on both sides, leaving him no way to escape. Takumi forced himself to look at the other in the eyes. For the first time, he noticed that they weren't brown like he thought, but a deep shade of gold. He wondered how he could only see it now. He wanted to say something about it, but the words still didn't come out. Maybe it was for the best; it would have probably sounded stupid anyway.

The Phantom was looking at him patiently, not moving an inch, like he expected him to make the first move. Was he as nervous as Takumi was? Souma's gaze averted toward his mouth and the blonde started biting his lower lip in anticipation. _"What are you waiting for?"_ he thought. _"Just go ahead and kiss me already."_ He didn't know if he wanted it to be over as soon as possible or if he just really wanted that kiss, but at that moment, it didn't matter to him.

Souma's face was so close he could feel his breath on him and it made the wait almost unbearable. Yet, the other seemed to hesitate. So, with a boldness he never knew he had, Takumi decided to take matters in his own hands and closed the gap between them himself.

He kept the contact brief, but Souma followed him as he retreated, sealing their lips once again. Despite being a bit awkward, the exchange soon became more heated and Souma's tongue trailed on his lower lip, sending shivers down his spine.

The redhead moved back and chuckled:

"I can taste my dish on you."

He then tried to resume the kiss, but Takumi stopped him before he could reach him.

"We said one kiss per victory. That would make two," he stated.

Souma retreated with a pout and reluctantly let go of him.

"You're no fun," he complained.

And deep down, Takumi agreed.

He hated to admit it but a part of him regretted having stopped him. He wondered how his dish would have tasted on Souma's lips, and he licked his in an attempt to find out. But somehow, his mouth was only filled with that ghost chocolate taste from before. It was stronger this time and he could identify it precisely: it was dark chocolate with chili pepper, the one his father loved so much. He hated it when he was a kid, but slowly started liking it as he grew up. It was gone in an instant, but Takumi refused to try checking on Souma's taste again, finding it ridiculous. He'd leave it for the next time…

Except there wouldn't be a next time! He quickly corrected.


	8. Kiss kiss change the rules

Hi everyone! Me again!

Note: The next few weeks are probably going to be quite wild for me, so you'll probably have to wait for the next chapter. Let's say a month. Might be less, might be more, but I'll be back no matter what so don't worry.

Also, one of the reasons why I'll be late is that the summer holidays will (finally, FINALLY) start for me next week, and I'll take that time to go to Florence (I really wanted to go there, for some reason...). I'll try to come back with lots of cool dish ideas and amazing new flavors! Yay!

Anyway, enjoy your reading!

* * *

 **Chapter 8: Kiss kiss change the rules**

Takumi won his next match almost by surprise. Of course his dish was the best, and Souma always had the honesty to admit his defeat. And it wasn't like he got used to losing either! But…

"You look disappointed. Could it be that you wanted that kiss after all?" the redhead asked with a smug smile.

"W-what? Of course not! You're the kissing pervert here!" he replied quickly, trying to ignore the fact that he was, once again, blushing.

Still, behind the satisfaction of victory, the bitter taste of over-steeped tea (regret, he knew it all too well) seemed to mock him, reminding him that yes, he was kind of disappointed for some reason. _"And you perfectly know why, even if you don't want to admit it…"_ it told him in an annoying way. He chose to ignore it.

The next match, he lost. He didn't have much time to complain about it however, because Souma was on him as soon as his victory was declared. He wrapped one arm around his waist, effectively trapping the chef against him, and tilted his chin with his other hand, forcing him to meet his eyes.

"You're ready?" he asked with a mischievous smile.

"Just get it over with," Takumi sighed, averting his eyes.

"Yes sir."

Their kiss lasted longer this time, and Souma was careful not to break it and let Takumi put it to an end like the last time. The redhead ran his tongue along his lips once again, seeking entrance, and he slightly opened them. As the kiss became deeper, his mouth was filled with the flavor of his dish mixed with Souma's own taste. The combination was just perfect and Takumi felt his heart run so wild he wondered how it didn't come out of his chest. When they broke the kiss, he wrapped his arms around the other's neck and sealed their lips once again without thinking. He didn't realize that it technically made it two kisses, and the redhead didn't complain.

When they finally broke apart, he found himself wishing that Souma didn't pay attention to his flushed cheeks. Fortunately, if he did, he didn't make any comment about it. Then, looking at his feet, Takumi stepped back and muttered:

"I think we should use eggs for the next dish."

Souma remained silent for a few seconds, and then replied:

"Yeah, that sounds great. Let's do that."

He lost again and the other seemed very happy about that. As for him … he didn't mind anymore. Maybe he was getting used to it. Maybe he was getting _too_ used to it. He didn't try to move or complain when Souma came to claim his prize. He might even have enjoyed it a little. And that was the problem.

That was a _real_ problem, actually. Something he had to take care of. And soon.

He refused to have another rematch after that. He needed time to think and put himself together. He couldn't keep losing like that, he reasoned. He was better than this!

However, he knew that his current dishes lacked something, and that something seemed to be motivation. The only thing that pushed him forward at the moment was his competitive spirit. Usually, it was enough to drive him, but somehow all he could think of when he cooked now was kisses. How his dishes would taste on Souma's lips, more precisely. It was pure scientific interest of course, but he still had to focus on winning, or else he'd never see what was under the Phantom mask! And worse, he'd be forced to admit his rival's superiority and he may even lose his interest!

But he wasn't some second class cook, he reminded himself. He was Takumi Aldini, the best Italian chef in Paris and soon to be the most praised chef worldwide! And to deserve this title, he couldn't keep losing against some nameless, literal underground cook, however amazing he was.

When he felt his determination returning, he came back to his rival and declared:

"Okay, I'm ready. Let's have a rematch!"

The other smiled and they soon started cooking again.

.

 _Souma could have stayed in Russia for the rest of his life, but change was on its way and once again, it was as brutal as it was unexpected. However, in the end, it was a wonder that it didn't happen earlier…_

 _Change could have come when that woman tried to tell him where his employer's money came from, for instance. She first believed that he had to wear the mask because of some horrible thing they did to him, and tried to rescue him from them. He soon explained the situation to her, to which she replied that these men belonged to the mafia and he shouldn't mix up with them._

 _Thinking back on it, it could have shaken him a little more… However, he was able to cook for a living, no one cared about his face and he didn't have to worry about anything in the world. He even had access to wonderful ingredients he could have never dreamed of using! Moreover, if his employer could be a cold and ruthless man, he seemed to have a soft spot for him. He was always kinder to his cooks than he was to his men, actually. So really, there was no reason for him to leave._

 _His luck left him when his boss took him to Paris during one of his travels. Or maybe he actually got lucky? In the end, Souma couldn't tell if what happened was a good or a bad thing. It definitely was a thing though, and his life changed entirely after that._

 _As always during his employer's travels, he met serious looking, stinking rich Russians, and all of them were surrounded with men whose main occupation seemed to be acting like they permanently had the worst time of their life. One of them in particular had the exact expression of someone eating raw lemon and finding it disappointingly tasteless._

 _That comparison gave Souma an idea…_

 _Unfortunately, the man didn't like his lemon smoked squids with salted plums. He hated them so much that he actually fainted. And when he woke up, he was so furious that he immediately jumped at the cook's throat. Fortunately, some people stopped him before he could reach him, and he started screaming at him, his voice so loud that Souma didn't understand a word of what he was saying. One of the guys next to him casually translated for him, and the main part of his speech was how he swore on his dead mother that he would kill him. People seemed to take the threat quite seriously, and his neighbor advised him to go find his boss and see how they could settle the problem._

 _It turned out that his new enemy was working for someone who was, apparently, as powerful as his employer. As he explained that, said employer started looking very old and very tired._

" _You will have to leave" he said, sounding like he already regretted that decision. "I don't think they're going to run after you, but I can't protect you here. You should try hiding for a while, until things settle down."_

 _He then gave him some cash to survive on his own – and by "some cash", he meant a few thousands euros – and let him leave._

 _That's how Souma ended up haunting the streets of Paris…_

.

Takumi won his next match by using some tricks he learned from Souma. He'd managed to adapt them to his own style and he was extremely proud of the result. Also, it was a great payback for the times when the redhead won with tricks he learned from him.

Takumi gave him a bright, triumphant smile and walked to him to get his reward. However, as he came closer to kiss him, Souma stepped back. The blonde frowned slightly and gave him a confused look.

"You still have two victories to go before you can take off that mask, remember? If you can win the next two matches, that is."

 _Oh, the mask, right,_ he thought. Kisses were only for when Souma won.

"I wasn't aiming for the mask" he stated.

"Wait… So you wanted a kiss?" the other grinned.

"W-what? No!" he exclaimed, adopting a defensive posture. But it was already too late…

Souma kept looking at him with crossed arms, still smiling widely.

"Well … I don't mind," the blonde finally admitted.

"But you know, Takumi..." the other started with a voice he didn't trust one bit. "If it's a reward for you as well, there's no point, right?"

"What do you mean?" he asked with a slight frown.

"I mean that maybe I should ask for something else whenever I win…"

Takumi didn't know what the other was about to offer, but he was sure he wouldn't like it. Everything, from his attitude to his smile, was telling him he had something terrible in mind. As he started wondering what he would ask for, he suddenly remembered why he was there and who the other was.

"If I win…" he started, speaking as slowly as was humanly possible – or so it seemed to Takumi.

It was like torture. Why did he love torturing him so much? For the first time in a while, the blonde realized who he'd been dealing with for all this time, and what it meant. It was the Phantom after all. The man who forced people to eat awful food for fun. What if the thing he actually had in mind was…

"I want … you."

It took Takumi some time to understand. When he did, he decided that he probably heard him wrong and asked:

"Sorry, what were you saying?"

"If I win, I want you," the other repeated.

"Err … I'm not sure I get you…"

"Given how red you are, you obviously do," the Phantom snickered.

"Are you serious?! How can you even ask for something like that?! It's… No!"

"Afraid you'd love it as much as my kisses?"

"I've never said… It's different!"

But even as he was protesting, Takumi couldn't help but think about how it could work as a motivation. He clearly didn't want it to happen. It would be like … loser sex. Even the name sounded terrible! Everything about the concept was just … no. There was no way he'd do that. So maybe…

"And you really think I'd accept such a thing for just one victory?"

"So you're actually okay with it?" Souma said in a genuinely surprised voice.

"No. But you'll take off your mask if I win the next two matches so I guess I can … make an effort," he explained reluctantly.

"How many do you want?"

Takumi was sure the other would try to bargain, just like they did when they first decided to put something at stake for their cooking battles. Or maybe not? He seemed so shocked by his almost immediate agreement that he might accept anything…

In any case, what he offered was sure to cut short anything of the sort. He needed a motivation … but also some security. And asking for too much meant he would keep losing time.

"Two victories."

"Wait, I don't think I heard correctly."

"I said you'd get what you want if you win twice."

"So you really mean I have to win one time, and then another, and that's _it_?!" he asked in utter disbelief.

If anything, seeing the other being the confused one for once was a great sight. Takumi could almost understand why he would try to unsettle him all the time. But still … wasn't two a bit too little? It wasn't too late to say he meant three or something. Or ask for the same kind of deal as Souma.

But then, he reminded himself, he would feel secure. And what he needed to win, apparently, was putting himself at risk … in a way. Also, he took a decision and wasn't going to take it back so easily. So he repeated as calmly as he could:

"Yes. If you win twice…" He stopped, unable to find an appropriate term. "Yeah…" he finished miserably, unable to look at Souma in the eyes and blushing like he never did before. He must have broken a record by now. How lame…

When he finally managed to look up, the Phantom was staring at him like he was unable to process the information. Takumi was sure he saw him blink a few times, although the mask made it hard to see. Finally, he said:

"Okay then. It's all agreed."

They shook hands and the blonde was almost surprised the other didn't ask for a kiss to seal the deal or something. Not that he wanted that, of course! But that sounded like something he would do…

.

 _Souma's first time on his own in a city he barely knew had been … how could he explain … Awful. People were giving him weird looks and he was sure he heard lots of mean remarks about his mask. As a result, he tried avoiding the main streets. But since he didn't know them, he quickly got lost and ended up in a park._

 _He sat gloomily under a tree and started thinking about what he would do. He had never been in Paris on his own before. Sure, he'd heard a lot about it. He did an apprenticeship at Shino's Tokyo before his accident, and some of the employees came directly from Paris to work there. They told him a lot about the nice restaurants, the best places to avoid tourists and such, but that didn't really help him now. As for the last time he came with his boss … his mains worries at the time were merely about finding a proper balance between food and tourism._

 _Finding a hotel could be a nice start, he thought… He didn't know any in the area but he surely had enough money to stay there for a while, and there would even be some to spare. He could use that to avoid annoying questions, for instance… But that wouldn't change anything about the people outside. And he clearly couldn't afford to stay inside his room all the time. Sure, his employer said he could come back in a while, but Souma had no idea what "in a while" really meant. A few days? A few weeks? Given his definition of "pocket money", it could mean anything! Maybe it would take years for things to settle down!_

 _As he thought about how he would eat while he waited, he somehow recalled Abel telling him about a homeless gourmet he met, who was acting like a professor for other homeless people. Or was it just a rumor? He couldn't remember… But there was a park in his story, he was sure of it! Maybe he could look for them? They might be able to help him. That would be a good start! Or a start, at least._

 _Or maybe he should find a better plan than looking for people who maybe didn't exist, in a place that probably wasn't the right one anyway. Unless they simply didn't exist anymore. He tried to remember as much of his conversations with his Parisian colleagues as he could, but found nothing interesting and ended up falling asleep._

 _He was woken up by a hand on his shoulder, shaking him gently. He slowly opened his eyes to find out that it was the middle of the night already. There was a man beside him, who asked him in French what he was doing there. Souma blinked a couple of times. He'd learned bits of French here and there, but he was too sleepy to remember anything. The man tried again in English, but by the time he understood what the other wanted, Souma remembered enough French to tell him he was lost and had nowhere to go. He didn't look like a policeman so he thought he wouldn't have troubles if he told him the truth. Maybe he could at least help him find a cheap hotel or something? However, the closer he looked at him, the more the stranger looked like someone who had nowhere to go, either. He seemed to think for a while, and then asked him to follow. Souma quickly accepted, thinking that he could probably leave if things became too fishy._

 _They didn't._

 _The man led him to what looked like a group of homeless people, gathered around a fire. An old man seemed to be presiding over the meeting. That's how Souma met Emile for the first time._

.

Takumi gritted his teeth so hard he could have broken them. He lost. How could he lose? He was allowed to lose only _one time_ and he'd blown it already! _Good job, Takumi._ One more defeat and…

Seriously, he scolded himself, _why_ did he have to say "two"? Why not three, at least?

"Takumi, are you okay?"

The blonde took a deep breath and forced himself to relax a bit.

"Yeah. I hope you enjoy your victory, because this is going to be your last," he replied sharply, more serious than ever. He couldn't afford another defeat.

Three victories, he reminded himself. If he won the next three times…

But that only meant Souma would have to take off his mask, a little voice inside him reminded. Winning the next three duels didn't mean he would be safe…

"We'll see about that," the other replied.

And Takumi thought exactly the same thing. First he was going to win, and then he would see how he could solve his problem.

.

 _The Trattoria remained closed on the day after Takumi's defeat. It was a hard blow and he needed time to recover. When he finally came back to the restaurant, everyone could see how gloomy he was. Even his food didn't taste the same. Everything he cooked ended up being overly sweet, because there was a bitter taste in his mouth that wouldn't go away. He started locking himself in his room as soon as he came home, sitting in the dark. Thinking._

 _A week later, he called Mimasaka, asking for a rematch. The other seemed surprised by his request, but something in his voice told Takumi that it was also what was planned._

" _I suppose you want your knife back if you win, right?" he asked slyly._

" _Yes. But not only mine. If I win, I want you to give all of the other tools back to their owners."_

" _That's a lot. What do you have to offer in exchange?"_

 _Takumi bit his lip nervously. Isami was going to hate him for what he was going to say, and he knew his brother would be right. But somehow, he felt that he had no other choice. He took a deep breath and said as calmly as he could:_

" _If you win, I will give you the Trattoria."_

 _He'd done some researches during the week and found that the man was linked to a businessman called Etsuya Eizan. From what he heard, he provided Mimasaka with everything he needed to challenge the other chefs. Apparently, the first step was only to test their strength. If their defeat broke them, or if they decided to let it go and keep on cooking like nothing happened, they failed the test. But if they decided to fight back, then…_

" _And what exactly would I do with it?" Mimasaka asked._

 _Takumi's confidence popped like a soap bubble._

" _B-but … isn't it what Eizan wants? You're working for him, aren't you?"_

 _He heard a loud laugh, between a roar and a screech. Terrifying..._

" _I see you've done your researches! You're right, that's what he wants. But are you sure those knives are worth your beloved restaurant?"_

" _I don't deserve it if I can't defeat you," he answered simply._

 _The other was right, however. The Trattoria was the place he cherished the most. Isami aside, it was the most precious thing he had! But whether or not he put it at stake, he knew that he wouldn't be worthy of it if he couldn't win against Mimasaka. So it was better this way._

" _But if you've done your research properly, you know that what he really wants isn't the restaurant, right?"_

 _Takumi stiffened. He'd heard about it, but…_

" _What Eizan truly wants is you. After all, this place is nothing without its chef…"_

" _What do you mean?" he asked, although he knew the answer all too well._

" _Owning the Trattoria Aldini means nothing if there is no Aldini in it. So if I win, you will keep working in your restaurant, except it will be owned by Etsuya Eizan."_

 _Takumi gritted his teeth. Other people could probably think of it as a good thing, but he knew the truth behind those words. What Mimasaka wanted from him was worse than losing the Trattoria. It was worse than anything he could imagine. It meant losing his freedom as a chef. Was it really worth it? He wondered._

 _But he knew the answer already._

 _He accepted the condition._

" _What about your brother? Don't you want your apologies this time?"_

" _You will apologize to him. Whether it's a condition or not."_

" _Whatever you're saying. When do you want your rematch?"_

" _How about next week?"_

" _Fine by me. But you know, the more you wait, the more time I have to_ _find out what you will cook and perfect it."_

" _I will be cooking cheese and vegetable raviolis. You can come over and try some if you want."_

 _Mimasaka remained silent for a moment._

" _That won't be necessary," he finally answered. "I already know what you're talking about."_

 _Takumi hated how the other always seemed to be one step ahead of him, but at the same time, he felt relieved that he didn't have to see more of him than what was necessary._

 _He started working on his revenge dish immediately._


	9. Crepe Party

Hey! I'm back!

Sorry for all the waiting! ... if there were people waiting, that is. Technically, I'll go back to the standard publication rhythm from now.

Anyway, Italy was sweet and gave me lots of great ideas, I'm now officially a freelance translator, life is great. Also I have no idea how to pay taxes, so the next few months will be fun...

Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 9: Crepe party**

 _For years, Takumi considered his vegetable and cheese ravioli duo to be his best dish. And no matter how much he had improved since the first time he made it, he still felt proud of his creation. He had the idea before his brother decided to become a sommelier. It was his best way of showing Isami how much he actually needed him, despite what everyone seemed to be thinking._

 _The two types of ravioli had a radically different taste, with the vegetable ones being strong and spicy while the other ones had a lighter taste. On their own, the first ones were overwhelming and the others were so blend they felt almost tasteless, especially compared to their counterpart. But together, they created a unique flavor, with the cheese raviolis appeasing the aggressive taste of the vegetable ones, not only balancing it but making them both even tastier while the tomato sauce created a certain uniformity between them._

 _The idea was good, but Takumi knew it wouldn't be enough against someone like Mimasaka. Plus, he had gone a long way since the day he created this dish, and so did Isami. It was something he had to show in his new creation, he thought. And though he didn't have all the details of his recipe yet, he already knew exactly how he could do that…_

 _When the day of his duel came, he was ready. He felt nervous about it of course, since he wasn't going to forget his last defeat so easily, but he knew he couldn't be better prepared than he already was._

 _As expected, his opponent started copying his recipe completely. But this time, Takumi wasn't taken by surprise and although he didn't think he would need it, he had even brought spare ingredients in case he had to improvise some last minute improvements. When Mimasaka's preparation started to diverge from his own, he deliberately slowed down to observe what the other did and see if any changes would be needed in his own recipe._

 _When his opponent presented his version of the dish, it was obvious that he completely understood the spirit of it. However, instead of simply improving the current raviolis, he added a third type with meat. It blended perfectly with the rest, and in order to make the different kinds easy to recognize, he even kneaded tomato sauce and spinach in the dough. The mix of colors between the red meat raviolis, the green vegetable ones and the white cheese ones was not only useful however. It also looked absolutely wonderful!_

 _Still, as he saw the judges devour his opponent's dish, Takumi couldn't repress a smile. He turned to the other with a victorious expression._

" _See?" he said. "In the end, you couldn't get rid of the cheese ones."_

" _That would have ruined the spirit of the dish. And it's just a stupid metaphor, it means nothing. I wasn't going to spoil a good idea just for that. But also…"_

" _What is this thing in the cheese raviolis? It was like a sudden burst of flavor!" one of the jury member exclaimed._

" _I added some fresh peppercorns in them," Mimasaka explained. "You won't find them in every one of them, however. I just wanted to add a little surprise."_

" _But that's not it! There are also sweeter parts in some of the two others! It's like yin and yang!" another cried excitedly._

 _Takumi frowned at the mention, but it was too late to change anything now, and he wasn't planning to do it either. His idea had to work, because if he wasn't going to win with it, his victory would mean nothing._

 _Repressing the tiny voice in his head telling him that a meaningless victory was better than no victory at all, he quickly finished his dish and presented it to the jury._

 _At first, it looked exactly like his first version and it almost felt like except for a few esthetic adjustments, it hadn't been improved one bit. The real changes were in the ingredients. The filling of his cheese raviolis now contained more goat cheese to add a fresher taste; and as expected, it was something Mimasaka had planned and copied. The part where it really differed from the other was that Takumi added a hint of basil and mint, to strengthen the taste. It was almost imperceptible, but it didn't go unnoticed by the judges. As for the vegetable ones, most of his ideas had been copied by his opponent too, except for the most important: the white wine he used to cook the filling. And that what he was truly counting on._

 _When the jury declared that finding a victor was almost impossible, Takumi smiled. That meant that he had won. Because when he offered them a glass of the same wine he used for his raviolis, the difference between their dishes became obvious. He won 3-0._

 _Mimasaka's expression turned quickly from an arrogant grin to a look of utter disbelief. Seeing that, Takumi gave him a portion of his dish along with a glass of wine._

" _Try it," he said in a way that almost sounded like an order._

 _As he ate it, the other suddenly started looking like the loneliest person in the world. That wasn't really what Takumi was expecting, but this expression told him everything about Mimasaka's true nature – or at least a very interesting part of it. What his dish showed was his complete trust in Isami, which was mostly reflected in his choice of wine. Because actually, he didn't choose it at all. He let his twin taste his final version of the dish and asked him to give him whatever he thought was best on the day of the duel._

 _When he explained this to Mimasaka, he gave him a resigned sigh. And although it was what Takumi had planned, he was still surprised to see him turn to his brother and apologize to him. That made him smile like never before, and he knew Isami's surprised and pleased expression was worth all the risks he took and all the lectures he got about putting the Trattoria at stake without asking his brother, aka the_ co-owner _of the place._

 _He got his dear_ mezzaluna _back, along with 99 other knives belonging to chefs he didn't know. He got to keep his beloved restaurant and his freedom as a chef. And more importantly, he was relieved to no end when Mimasaka offered to give all of the knives back in person or send them back to their owners. Because really, he had no idea what he would have done with them otherwise…_

 _This victory made him the happiest, proudest chef in all of Paris for weeks. And then, boredom crept up again, and no one came to change that for years…_

.

As Souma and Takumi were discussing the requirement for their next dishes, Emile walked in joyfully.

"Souma, glad to see you're there. And your friend is still here too, that's perfect! Look at what I found!" he said excitedly, taking a bottle from his bag.

They both came closer to find out that the old man had brought a few bottles of cider. And a nice one, it seemed.

"I remember you mentioned buckwheat flour last time I came. Do you still have it?"

"Yeah, sure. I wasn't sure how to use it."

"Perfect! Today, we make _galettes_!"

"Ehm… Sure?" Souma answered.

"You don't know what it is?" Takumi asked.

"Not exactly…"

"It's like savory crepes, with buckwheat flour. It's a Breton specialty," he explained.

"Oh, that! Sure, let's do it!"

"But if we're really going to make _galettes_ , the batter needs to rest at least four hours to be ready… Emile, don't you think we should go for simple buckwheat crepes?"

"Hmm… I didn't think about that, but I guess you're right," the gourmet replied.

"What's the difference?"

"Everything? The texture is different and since it contains some wheat flour, you can cook it immediately."

"Takumi, since when are you a specialist in Breton cooking?" Souma asked.

"A friend of mine is obsessed with it. Especially crepes," Takumi replied. "By the way, do you want me to take care of the batter?" he offered after a pause. "You can add things to it afterward, if you want."

"No, it's fine. I've already made buckwheat crepes before. I'm just not used to the terminology."

"As you wish. I just hope you don't lose because you failed the batter. It would be too easy…"

"Oh, so you really want me to win and-"

"Shut up!" the blonde cried, remembering what would happen if he lost this time – or any other time, actually. Fortunately for him, Emile didn't ask for explanations.

It took Takumi some time to decide what he would do. The batter was basic and he started it immediately, but the filling was tricky. There were too many possibilities, and he had to find something that would ensure his victory. He remembered that last time, Emile favored simplicity. However, it wouldn't be enough this time. He had to find something Souma wouldn't think of, and use it against him.

As he finished the first step, he quickly turned around to see what the other was doing and found him cutting a large amount of cabbage. He checked the other ingredients he chose and quickly deduced that he was going to add things traditionally used in _okonomiyaki_. He smiled softly. He should have expected something like that. But that didn't help him find how he would counter that.

He went back to his own ingredients with an annoyed frown, and his eyes fell on Emile's bag. He looked at it for a moment and smiled again. The bottles didn't give him the complete answer, but now he had something he could work with. He quickly filled the details of his dish, and started cooking.

As expected, Souma finished first. Takumi was pleased to see that he was right: the redhead's crepe looked a lot like an _okonomiyaki._ As he tasted it, he realized there were also some white wine and shrimps. The dish was original and unexpected, as well as absolutely delicious. Beating it would be hard, especially given how enthusiastic Emile was about it. But it also confirmed that his idea was right. He sipped his cider and smiled. He still had a chance to win.

His crepe was very classic in comparison to Souma's. Emile and he looked quite surprised, and maybe a bit disappointed. Takumi didn't care. The twist wasn't exactly in the crepe, and they would soon find out what it was.

Emile didn't look impressed for the first two bites, and almost seemed ready to declare Souma the winner. However, when he took a sip of his cider, his expression changed completely. He gave him a surprised look, and went back to his crepe. He ate the rest of it quickly, taking a sip every few bites. Takumi smiled. Victory was his.

When Emile was finished, he gave a sad look to his empty plate. He then looked at both for a moment, and slowly put his hand on the one that contained Takumi's crepe.

"Congratulations, Takumi. You win," he declared. "To be honest, Souma's crepe was more original, and it's tastier on its own. But yours… You really took into account the fact that I asked for these crepes to go with the cider. Contrary to Souma's crepe that is excellent on its own but doesn't go well with the drink, yours only reveals its true potential when eaten with it. The crepe's filling and the cider enhance each other's taste in a very interesting way. Really, I'm impressed."

Takumi smiled nervously and quickly looked away, muttering:

"I've had a good training…"

He'd have to thank his obsessive friend later. And Isami, too.

Emile then proposed to make sweet crepes for the rematch. They both accepted and as they started thinking about their dish, someone knocked on the door. Souma opened it to reveal three young women who were soon invited in. They greeted Emile happily, reminding Takumi that the old man was an underground celebrity, just like the Phantom.

Souma took this opportunity to ask them to be their jury in their crepe contest, which they gladly accepted.

"But if Emile is also a member, there will be an even number," one of them objected.

"Let's say his vote counts twice in case of a draw. He's the specialist here, so that seems fair," another replied.

Everyone agreed to that rule and the cooks quickly started their preparations.

This time, Souma tried something with apples and a tad of cinnamon. He flambéed them with rum and added some cereals right before serving, for crunchiness. The result was tasty and surprising, like most of his dishes.

As for Takumi, he knew that the strong taste of Emile's cider would go extremely well with dark chocolate. He added some fresh pears and decided to put some Espelette pepper to deepen the taste. Finally, he unevenly mixed some cream with it to make the flavor more complex.

Everyone seemed to enjoy both creations deeply and he thought making a choice would be hard. However, the first girl didn't hesitate one bit when she voted for Souma. As for the second one, it seemed harder but she voted for Takumi. So did the third one.

That made it two to one, but Emile's choice could change everything. The blonde looked at him expectantly. His heart was racing in his chest and he could have sworn that he'd never felt this anxious before.

While the old man was making a decision, the girls started arguing.

"I can't believe you voted for the pear-chocolate crepe!" the one who preferred Souma's exclaimed. "The apple one had _cereals_ in it! That's an awesome idea! It was delicious _and_ crunchy!"

"Sure, but the chocolate one was just so rich… It felt like melting, that was divine!" the third girl replied.

"I really liked the cream," the third one added. "The chocolate's taste was strong, but the cream made it softer sometimes, so I never grew tired of it. But I have to say the flambéed apples were also great! I wish I didn't have to choose between them…"

"Whatever you're saying, the apple one was the best!"

While they were comparing both crepes, Emile was still deciding on the winner and, after what felt like an eternity, slowly pointed Takumi's plate. The chef did his best not to jump in happiness, or let out a huge sigh of relief. Yet, he felt both emotions like never before, it seemed. Just one more victory and… He turned to Souma and gave him a triumphant smile. Soon he'd see his full expressions. Soon.

"Aw, come one!" the first girl protested loudly. "How am I the only one seeing the superiority of the crunchy apple crepe? You guys have no taste!" she concluded, pouting.

They ended up making crepes with the girls until there was no batter left. When everyone left, it wasn't long until Takumi asked:

"Okay, what do we do now?"

He wanted it to end as soon as possible. He was so close to seeing Souma's face! Plus, he was _on fire_ right now! That almost made up for the previous public defeats. Almost…

"I'm a bit tired right now so let's do it after we sleep, okay?" he replied.

"Afraid you're going to lose again?"

"Not really… But this is important for the both of us, right? So why not decide on the rules right now so we can think about our dish during the night?"

Takumi considered the idea for a few seconds.

"That sounds interesting," he said thoughtfully. "But since it is so important, as you said, why not make it a free fight?"

"What do you mean?"

"We could just go for the best dish we can. No rules whatsoever."

As expected, the other accepted excitedly.

.

Souma spent the whole night thinking about his dish, putting ideas together and perfecting it long after he finished his experiments. What he really wanted was to make a strong impression; to cook something bold and surprising. Something that would sum up everything he'd done until now. A specialty.

He had already decided to make a risotto. It was something he enjoyed cooking, although he never used it during his challenges these days. He found that the Italian origin of the dish made it a perfect choice, and that gave him plenty of possibilities. But among them, he really felt like using seafood and … maybe zucchini? He remembered an old experiment involving bonito stock, and the result was surprisingly great. Maybe he could use that? Or he could go for apples…

In any case, he didn't have seafood at the moment, so he had to go buy some, first thing in the morning.

It crossed his mind that it might be unfair for Takumi, but since he was planning to ask him if he needed anything before leaving, he thought that it wouldn't be a problem. He was going to win that fair and square.

Seafood risotto it will be, he decided as he fell asleep.

.

Takumi was woken up by Souma in the middle of a dream. He was cutting noodles that were trying to attack him and he was fending them with his kitchen knife when Souma interrupted it.

It took him a while to understand what the other wanted. When he finally got it, he took a few seconds to think about it and shook his head, declining his offer. He had already checked that he had all the ingredients he needed, and if he hadn't been so tired, he would have made a comment about how careless Souma was, planning to use ingredients he wasn't sure he could get. Failing to repress a yawn, he asked:

"What time is it anyway? When do we begin?"

"I'll need about two hours to find everything and come back, but you can go back to sleep if you want. We'll start when you're ready."

"I guess I'll get up now. I have a lot of things to get ready beforehand."

Today was the day, he thought as he got prepared. If he won … No. _When_ he won, he would finally be able to see Souma's face. He didn't have time to think about it during the night, as he kept thinking about his dish, but now that he was deep in his noodle preparation, he started wondering again what this elegant mask was hiding.

 _But what if I lose though?_

Takumi's swift and precise movements stopped. No, he thought, shaking his head to get rid of the idea. He wouldn't lose. He had everything he needed: a good idea, a great knowledge of the place, and most importantly, a _solid motivation._ He really wanted to win and he also _couldn't afford to lose._

 _You also had that against Mimasaka. And yet, you lost the first time…_

He winced at the thought. However, it wasn't the same, he reminded himself. Sure, his _mezzaluna_ and his brother's honor were important, but here, a defeat meant he would lose… Well…

It was better not to think about it.

And whether Souma was really serious about it or not didn't matter. Because today, he was going to win no matter what. Victory had to be the only thing on his mind.

.

Thinking about it, it was almost sad that they didn't have a jury of any sort. But now here they were with their dishes almost ready and their only hope left was that someone came. It happened quite often of course, but still, it wasn't predictable and since Emile showed up the day before, there was little chance that he'd come back so soon.

Takumi sighed as he added the final touches to the single portion of his dish. What a shame that it would be for only one person. However, it turned out quite well so he would probably keep the idea for later…

"Souma, I'm done. When will you be ready?"

"What a coincidence!" the other exclaimed. "I'm ready too!"

He put his creation on a plate and presented it to Takumi before asking:

"So, what do you have for me?"

The final showdown was on.


	10. Family Reunion

Hi everyone! Me again. I hope you didn't mind the waiting too much (but hey, at least I'm back to a normal publication rhythm).

Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 10: Family Reunion**

Souma and Takumi had been arguing about the qualities of each dish for what felt like hours and still couldn't come to an agreement. It was starting to be tiresome as none of them wanted to let the other win. That was predictable, the blonde thought. They both had really good reasons for refusing to lose, so obviously, neither of them could be really objective here. What they needed was an impartial jury, or at least one person whose judgment wouldn't be impaired by the things at stake.

If only someone could come, knock on the door and…

"Nii-chan!"

Takumi recognized the voice immediately. He turned around swiftly and barely had time to prepare for the incoming impact of his brother running at him full speed. Isami hugged him tightly, mumbling:

"What were you doing? What happened? Why didn't you tell me you were here? Do you have any idea how worried I was? Don't do that again!"

As he tried to keep his plate balanced with one arm, Takumi put the other around his twin to hug him back. Something was wrong, he thought, unable to pinpoint the problem.

"But … I haven't left for that long, right?" he asked as he tried desperately to calculate how long he'd been in the underground kitchen.

It then hit him what the problem was. Isami was too thin. He was usually that thin in the middle of summer, and that was _months_ away! Could it be…?

"It's been ten years, Takumi."

His whole world shattered. That wasn't true, right? That couldn't be true! But he didn't have time to see Isami's face so maybe…

His brother finally let go of him and looked at him right in the eyes. He hadn't aged a day, and there was a playful smile on his lips.

"Did you really believe that? Of course it hasn't been years! Nii-chan, you're so silly!"

Still, there were tears in his eyes. And he was responsible for them.

"But look at you! Given how thin you are it must be at least July! How long…" Takumi started.

Isami's smile disappeared instantly as he said:

"A week. We've been looking for you for a whole week."

So summer was still months away. And yet…

The truth hit Takumi like a house in a hurricane, and he suddenly felt so terrible about himself he could have cried. His throat tightened, and he said weakly:

"I'm so sorry… How could I have been so selfish?"

There were only two things that made Isami lose weight like that: summer heat and extreme stress. Sure, a week wasn't such a long time, objectively. But how would _he_ have reacted if his brother had been in his place? The time he spent underground with the Phantom seemed so short to him, but for Isami it must have felt like _ages._ And yet, not once did he think about him, except maybe for that quick thought when he won with his first crepe.

Of course he was aware that he'd spent more than one day underground. But somehow, that didn't matter to him. He didn't even think about the clients, or all the people he was letting down. Because surely, he was going to prove his superiority next time, and then he could go back to the Trattoria proudly. Also, he hadn't left for _that_ long, right?

But it's already been a week… A whole week, and it never occurred to him that people would be worried, not knowing where he was. He completely forgot about Isami and didn't even think about how he would feel about him disappearing without a word. What a terrible brother he was…

.

At the same moment, another kind of reunion was taking place in the underground kitchen. Jouichiro and Gin had entered it with Isami and as the sommelier ran to his brother, the detective approached the Phantom slowly, almost as if he was scared to see him disappear if he wasn't careful.

"I've finally found you, Souma."

There was no doubt about it this time. His son turned around to face him with a joyful:

"Hi Dad!"

The conversation stopped there.

They stood in front of each other awkwardly, neither of them knowing what to say. It had been such a long time… After all those years, after nearly losing hope so many times, he was finally standing in front of his son. And now, he didn't know what to do.

It was funny, he thought, how the way you react to things is always different from what you imagine… Although it was true that whenever he tried to picture what would happen if he found Souma one day, he could never decide if he'd be angry or overwhelmed with joy first. However, he never imagined that he would feel … nothing. As he looked at him, wondering why he was wearing that stupid mask and not taking it off, he noticed the plate in his hands. And since old habits die hard, he couldn't help but ask:

"Did you cook that?"

He slapped himself mentally as he said that. He could have found a better approach… However, it was enough to make Souma react and get them out of that dead end they both seemed to be stuck in.

"Not that one. I was having a contest with Takumi, and this is his dish."

Challenging random chefs sounded so much like his son… And of course, that immediately raised his interest.

"And who's the winner?" he asked.

"We were trying to figure it out."

Souma then turned around to better see the newcomers, said hello to Gin and stopped at Isami and Takumi, who was looking at his brother like a guilty child.

"That makes three of you," he remarked.

"And I suppose you want us to decide on the winner, right?"

"That'd be great!"

Jouichiro sighed, unable to repress a little smile. His son hadn't changed one bit.

Of course, Gin accepted immediately, and so did Isami once they managed to get his attention. As soon as he heard the proposition, Takumi seemed to switch back on competitive mode. His expression changed completely, from a guilt ridden puppy to a determined chef. Both of them prepared three portions for the improvised jury and let them try both dishes.

Curious, Jouichiro started with Souma's creation, wondering how his son's style improved after all this time. It was a seafood risotto with mussels, zucchini and grilled oysters. On the side were three small pancakes that looked a lot like…

"Are those blinis?" Gin asked.

"Yes. I thought it would be great to… Well, try the risotto and you'll see."

From the first bite, Jouichiro could tell how different it was from what Souma used to cook. It was as daring and original as usual, but it mixed so many ideas and influences that each bite felt like an explosion of creativity. If the mussels had been cooked with the rest of the rice, giving their taste to the whole dish, the grilled oysters and zucchinis had clearly been cooked separately and added last minute to give it small bursts of a stronger, different taste. The result was almost overwhelming though, and as soon as the thought came to his mind, the detective understood why the blinis were important. He took a bite and the soft taste and fluffy texture soothed him immediately, almost resetting his taste buds to let him dig in more of the risotto.

"You've grown up a lot, haven't you, Souma?" he said with a soft smile.

His son's radiant grin was the only answer.

He eventually put down the plate and turned to the other, thinking that Takumi would have a hard time beating that. Surprisingly, his creation wasn't an Italian dish like he would have expected. It was a soba salad, mixing Japanese and Italian ingredients. Parmesan cheese chips, dried tomatoes, marinated chicken and pine kernels met soy sprouts, small bits of nori and various fresh herbs. On a small ramekin on the side were what looked like breadstick chunks.

Deciding to keep them for later, he took a bite of the salad. Soy sauce and olive oil were used in the dressing, but the real surprise came from its spiciness. It was strong yet short, which was very typical of wasabi. The marinated chicken, although tasty, felt quite appeasing and was amazingly soft in his mouth. The result was incredibly refreshing, and the crunchiness of the breadstick chunks added an interesting twist to the texture.

That was … clearly different from what Takumi had cooked until now. This dish was on a whole new level, and a quick look at his brother's dumbfounded expression was enough to confirm that he thought exactly the same thing. Of course it tasted like something the Italian chef would come up with, but at the same time, it was full of a passion and a fire that the detective hadn't felt in his previous creations. Really, deciding on a winner after that would be a real challenge. And yet, he had to do it.

Making a choice seemed to be as hard for the two others as it was for him. And yet, the final decision was unanimous: the winner was Takumi. The blonde let out a radiant smile at the words and turned to Souma with a triumphant look, making Jouichiro wonder if there wasn't more to this challenge than just their pride. However, he didn't dwell on it as he declared:

"Okay Souma, now that this is settled, maybe you could take off that mask and come back home with us."

This made Takumi frown in discontent, for some reason.

"No," Souma replied firmly. "I mean, I'm not really against going back with you, but the mask stays on."

"What? But, Souma, why…?"

"We had a deal," Takumi intervened. "I've reached the number of victories we agreed on. You have to take it off now."

Souma turned to him with pursed lips and remained silent for a few seconds.

"I made the deal with you, not them," he countered. "So I'm okay with taking it off in front of you, and only you."

If the blonde's smile earlier was radiant, this one was dazzling. And Jouichiro swore he literally saw his eyes glitter. He looked so much like a small child finally receiving the toy of his dreams along with a huge ice cream… However, that only lasted an instant before he put back his serious face on and asked:

"Why are you so protective of it, anyway?"

Sighing, Souma grabbed his wrist and quickly led him to the small shack his father noticed in the corner.

"You'll know that soon enough," he muttered.

As he went in Souma's room – or their room, for the past … week apparently – Takumi's heart was racing in his chest. Which wasn't different from his last three challenges, thinking about it… Especially that one. But now it was over, and he would finally be able to see that face he'd been dreaming of for all this time. He found himself hoping that it wasn't really made of pizza, and slapped himself mentally for having such a stupid thought.

Of course, he was prepared for him being disfigured in some way. That sounded logical, and the fact that he was Yukihira's son only confirmed that, given what he heard about him. However, he didn't really care about it. Actually, now he knew the truth about the Phantom's origins, he wanted more than ever to show him that his appearance wasn't a problem, so he could leave the underground kitchen and start living a normal life again. Or more precisely, one that was normal according to society's standards and not only his own, twisted ones.

Souma put his hands on both sides of the mask, and hesitated for a second, saying:

"I haven't looked at myself in a very long time, but it will probably look terrible. Are you sure you want that?"

"Go ahead, Souma. I'm sure it will be fine."

He let out a nervous smile – since when was Souma nervous? – and finally took it off, revealing…

Wait, something was wrong here.

Takumi blinked a few times, thinking that he might be seeing wrong due to the dim light. But the more he looked at it, the more certain he was that…

"Are you serious?"

"Well, I told you it was going to be horrible…"

"You have _nothing_!"

And that was true. Apart from a scar on the eyebrow and _maybe_ a little damaged skin on the left side, Souma's face was the smoothest, most normal looking face he could have imagined. Actually, he was way cuter than he would have thought…

"What? But it can't be!" the redhead exclaimed.

Takumi couldn't tell if he felt disappointed about it or not. That kind of plot twist was just so … lame. Even fairytales never dared to do that! There had to be some kind of trial for that! Well, the challenges _were_ some kind of trial, but that was off topic.

"Really Souma. Apart from that little scar over there-" he pointed toward it vaguely –"you have nothing."

The redhead gave him a suspicious look – and really, it felt so _good_ to finally see his expressions – as he said:

"You're lying. You can't be serious."

"Why would I lie?!" he exclaimed.

He was maybe a bit too loud when he said that, because they both heard Isami's voice in the distance shouting:

"I don't know what you guys are talking about, but you shouldn't worry about my brother lying. He's the most terrible liar I know!"

They both fell silent after that. Then, Souma asked shyly:

"So you're serious? I have … nothing?"

Seeing his uncertain, hopeful expression, Takumi softened. Then, without thinking, he put his hand on Souma's cheek and cupped it gently, whispering:

"Trust me. You're beautiful."

He slowly inched toward him and brushed his lips against his. The other stiffened at the contact, but soon gave in and wrapped his arm around his waist, pulling him closer as he deepened the kiss.

Takumi eventually pulled back, too soon for Souma's taste, and said with a smile that somehow made his eyes seem bluer and brighter than ever:

"Now let's get out of here, shall we?"

He nodded. He would have followed those eyes anywhere.

As he stepped out, Souma was soon struck by how strange it felt to have his face uncovered after such a long time. Sure, he took off the mask when he slept, but he usually covered his face with the blankets so it didn't really count. And even then, he still had plenty of time to forget what it was to go out in the plain light – sort of – without it.

His father walked toward him, but stopped at a few meters with a horrified expression. If it hadn't been for Takumi's hand in his – when did they even start holding hands?! – he would have run away and put his mask back on immediately. So he _was_ disfigured after all… he thought regretfully.

"Souma… Are you kidding me?!"

"Dad I…"

"Did you really run away and hide from society even though your face looks perfectly _normal_?! Do you have any idea how I felt for all those years, while you were having fun in your little underground kitchen?! I even stopped being a chef and became a _detective_ to find you! Do you know how _boring_ it can be, playing spies for people who absolutely want you to prove their partner is cheating on them, or working for companies who believe someone is spying on them? And all of this for _nothing_?! Really Souma, you have some serious explaining to do!"

So Takumi was right, in the end. Relieved, Souma simply scratched the back of his head and said with an apologetic smile:

"Well, it seems that I was wrong about that whole disfigured thing. Sorry?"

His father sighed, and that seemed to be the end of it. _For now_ , Souma thought, knowing he would have a lot to explain once they were alone. Jouichiro then closed the gap between them, and for a second the redhead almost thought he was going to hug him. But his dad had never been the hugging type, so he simply put a hand on his shoulder and told him:

"You might be a complete moron, but I'm still glad I found you. I couldn't wait to beat you for the 500th time!"

"Well that's not going to happen anymore! I will beat you next time, you'll see!"

"Say that when you beat Takumi, will you?"

"I've already beaten him! It was just a one-time thing."

"Hey, you've lost against me three times in a row!" Takumi protested.

The only thing left to complete the cliché would be a lame pun or a gag of some sort to make everyone laugh in a completely exaggerated way… Isami thought as he looked at the group from a small distance, a soft smile on his face.

* * *

And that's why I intentionally "forgot" about the other characters. But now this part of the story is over and I'm _so happy_ I can start using other PoV again! I missed them all so much...

Also, about the plot twist of Souma's face being normal, I just wanted to say that it was my plan from the very beginning. I didn't change my mind or anything. That was supposed to be the ultimate plot twist of the story, and I'm so proud I've finally reached that point! Don't worry though, my work here is far from done and I still have lots of new ideas for the upcoming chapters!

As always, I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter. See you in two weeks!


	11. Meanwhile On The Surface

**Chapter 11: Meanwhile on the surface…**

The day his brother disappeared, Isami knew something was wrong as soon as he stepped in the Trattoria. It was too quiet. Sure, Takumi wasn't the loud type most of the time, but he was always eager to make him taste his new dishes. So if he wasn't calling him, it could only mean one thing: it went all wrong and he was sulking in the kitchen.

However, it was all empty when he came in to see what the problem was. There were untouched ingredients on the counter and no sign of his brother. And that … that was really wrong. How come Takumi didn't cook anything? And more importantly, if he changed his mind, why didn't he put the ingredients back? That didn't look like him at all…

More worried each second, he called his name. But there was no answer.

The door leading to the cellar was open, and Isami rushed to it, praying he wouldn't find his brother injured in there. Or worse…

But yet again, the room was empty. He checked everywhere, but there was no sign of his twin.

Trying not to panic completely, he decided to call him on his phone, hoping Takumi would answer. He didn't. Worse, he didn't even have his phone with him, since he found it lying on a counter.

Okay, he thought, _now_ it's time to panic.

There was no reasonable explanation for his brother's sudden disappearance, and if he really had to go somewhere, he would never leave everything in such an unorderly manner. And yet, there was no sign of struggle either… It was almost like he vanished.

He asked around the neighborhood and visited all the places Takumi could have gone to, but no one there had seen him. That was the last straw. At this point, he was panicking completely. Sure, he was used to worrying about his brother all the time, but he could swear he'd never been so scared for him in his life.

Why did he have to leave him alone? He should have stayed with him! He knew bad things were likely to happen when he wasn't around!

He tried to calm down a bit and called the detectives. Sure, a disappearance like that had nothing to do with the case they were working on, especially now they had caught the Phantom, but Isami had a feeling that everything was linked.

Takumi didn't come back that evening, and for the first time in ages, the Trattoria remained closed on a Friday night. Maybe Megumi would have been able to take on Takumi's role like she did last time, but Isami clearly wasn't in a position to work.

.

 _Jouichiro had done his best to go back to Japan as soon as he heard about his son's accident. But apparently, his best wasn't enough… As Souma had predicted, he arrived after he was released from the hospital. Almost right after, actually._

 _He went there directly after leaving the airport, only to learn that Souma had left two days ago. He then went back to their home, ready to scold him for not having told him where he was, but he wasn't there either. He didn't realize something was wrong back then. He only started to understand his son had disappeared when, after calling him several times without success, he asked around him and no one, including Souma's friends, could tell him where he was._

 _Coming to terms with it and admitting that there clearly was a problem had been hard. Even as he went to the police to report his son missing, he still felt like he would be disturbing them for nothing. Like Souma was going to appear out of nowhere and tell him he'd met some chef and spent days cooking with them, forgetting about time and other trivial matters such as his family and friends. But he never answered his cellphone and as Jouichiro started explaining his problem to the policemen, it became clearer and clearer that he should have reacted earlier._

 _How Gin learned about it, he didn't know. But after all this time not seeing him, his call had been the most comforting thing he'd had in days. Not as comforting as his son telling him he was fine and would be back in an hour, of course, but that still helped a bit…_

 _._

Megumi often thought that she was a terrible person. Not because she was mean of course, but she always felt like she was a burden and people were giving her too much credit. This time however, she had reached a whole new level of terribleness. She refused to talk about the Phantom, and now Takumi was _gone._

She didn't know why, but she was certain these two events were linked. Every time something happened in the Trattoria, you could be sure that the Phantom was involved, and this was no exception. As to why he'd kidnap her boss however, she had no idea.

Maybe it was her fault? Maybe he wanted to challenge him and found no other way since she refused to use his recipes? Or maybe he was angry that they would mistake him with some other guy? Unless the people behind the second Phantom's appearance wanted to use him for an exchange?

She shook her head, trying to get rid of those thoughts. Knowing _why_ didn't matter at the moment. What she should really be focusing on was how to solve the problem at hand and what she could do to help. And she already had an idea. Of course it wasn't going to help them find Takumi, or at least not directly, but it was time for her to tell everyone the truth.

It somehow went better than she expected – probably because she was expecting the worst. Everyone was surprised of course, but no one blamed her for not telling them earlier. Still, she felt terrible every time she looked at Isami. To her, the sight of his tired, worried expression was unbearable. And yet, he still did his best to reassure her when she apologized and confessed that everything was her fault.

As for the detectives, they seemed extremely interested in what she had to say about the Phantom. As soon as she told them she knew him, a spark lit in Yukihira's eyes and he asked:

"Did you see him? What was he like?"

"He came to the kitchen a couple of times, to show me his recipes. He's … slightly taller than me, he has messy, bright red hair, and … I can't really tell you more. You already have Satoshi's description and I haven't seen any distinctive feature other than his hair. I'm sorry about that."

However, that seemed to be enough for the detective who ignored her last sentence and leaned forward, asking:

"Did he tell you his name?"

"He … told me to call him Souma, if that can help."

Megumi wasn't sure if it was his real name or just a nickname, but the answer seemed to satisfy the detective. He looked even more excited than before and had a huge smile on his face. She had never seen him smile like that before. Or at all, now that she thought about it… As for Doujima, he was looking at him with a glint of joy. Then, another detail struck her and she added:

"Also, he was speaking Japanese. He actually told me he was happy to finally have someone he could speak Japanese with. I don't know if-"

She never got to finish her sentence, because Yukuhira suddenly jumped from his chair, as if his excitement was too much to be contained. Doujima put a hand on his shoulder to calm him down a bit, and Isami asked:

"Is something the matter?"

"That's my son!" Yukihira exclaimed. "I thought I was wrong at first, but the person you're describing … it can only be him! So if we find Takumi then…"

"Don't jump to conclusions, Jouichiro," Gin said to appease him. "If Souma really is the Phantom, that doesn't mean Takumi is with him. I can't picture him kidnapping him like that, especially now. He had lots of opportunities to do it before, don't you think?"

"I guess you're right," he sighed. "But that's still the best clue we have, right?"

"Not necessarily," he stated before turning back to Megumi. "You said he went to the kitchen at night, right?"

"Yes."

"How did he get in?"

"Most of the time, he was already there when I came in. But I saw him come from the cellar once."

"I think Takumi went there before he disappeared," Isami suddenly recalled. "The door was opened and I remember there was a bottle out of place in his rack. I didn't think much about it back then but…"

"There might be a secret passage leading to Souma's lair!"

"We've never heard of anything like that," Isami argued. "If there really is a secret passage, don't you think we would have found it by now?"

"Not if you didn't know where to look. You have an unused room in there after all, right?" Yukihira countered.

"But we're still not sure Takumi is with him," Doujima intervened. "And right now, he's our absolute priority."

The other detective turned to him, ready to say something, but he didn't have time for that as his colleague continued:

"I mean, now we know for sure that Souma is alive and doing well. But we can't be sure it is Takumi's case."

Yukihira sighed, but didn't argue with him.

"What's your plan then?" he asked instead.

"There is still that man we caught earlier. It's obvious now that he isn't the real Phantom, but he might know something. Or better: maybe the person who sent him is behind Takumi's disappearance."

"But we don't need to both investigate that, do we?"

"I guess not," he admitted. "Do you want to split work?"

"If you don't mind."

"Well, I didn't expect you to give up on finding Souma first," he sighed. "So I guess we can do that, yes."

"But maybe it's neither of those," Isami stated. "I mean, I can't find any other explanation, but maybe we should contact the police. After all, someone _disappeared_ so…"

The detectives seemed to hesitate, but then welcomed the idea.

"You shouldn't tell them about our suspicions on the Phantom, though. We can follow that lead while they're looking for other possibilities."

The sommelier accepted, and they soon started their research. Yukihira would look for Souma, Doujima would check on the fake Phantom and Isami would go to the police station to report his missing brother.

 _._

If the police had been skeptical about the Phantom, they at least took Isami seriously when he reported Takumi's disappearance. As promised he didn't tell them about how they suspected something happened with the Phantom, which was probably for the best anyway. The sommelier was certain they wouldn't have believed him if he had.

Of course, there wasn't much they could do about it, but at least Isami felt like he did everything he could to find his brother. Not that it really helped him go through the night, when Takumi's hypothetical ghost came to haunt him. Or just whenever he had time to think, and all of his thoughts just converged to his missing twin.

As soon as he heard the news, Satoshi offered him to move in the _Résidence_ until they found him. Apparently, Fumio was ready to make an exception for him and let him stay for a while without trial. He had refused the first day, in case his brother came back. But their flat seemed so big and empty that he soon gave in and spent his evenings there, surrounded with a lively community of cooks from all over the world that left him no time to worry about his twin. Their neighbor had a spare key in case he came back on his own, anyway…

Of course, being in such company as the people from the _Étoile Polaire_ , he barely had time to sleep. But he knew he wouldn't be able to rest either way, so it was for the best.

As for the days that followed his deposition, he spent them in the cellar with Yukihira, looking for the potential secret passage hidden there. On the first day, the detective told him about how he lost his own son, who disappeared just like Takumi did. Being with someone who understood what he was going through made him feel better somehow, even though knowing that the man had to live with it for years was also a bit discouraging. However, if Yukihira didn't give up after all this time, Isami certainly wasn't going to.

After their little backstory time, the two men barely spoke, only sharing important information for their researches. And finally, they found it. It didn't take them that long, actually. Takumi left no footprint since there was little dust on the ground, but after checking each wall, they eventually found one that sounded hollow. Learning how to open it had been slightly harder but the real problem was finding their way to the Phantom's lair in the labyrinth that was lying on the other side of the secret passage.

Gin soon joined them in their exploration, and Megumi did her best to help as well. They also suspected her of going down there on her own when they left to get some sleep. Actually, the only reason why she didn't come with them when they finally found Takumi and Souma was that she clearly needed some rest. Given how she looked, she needed it even more than Isami, which was saying something.

But now, all of this was behind him, the sommelier thought with a smile. They were all reunited. And he wasn't letting Takumi go anywhere now!

.

As they were coming back up, Souma gave his father a summary of what he did during his absence. He told him about how he truly believed that he was disfigured beyond repair, how he met Sergei and ended up in Russia, and finally how he found a new home underground. Of course, during his story, he got scolded a few times for not checking on his face himself, or for messing with dangerous people (that one was Gin), but mostly, his dad seemed quite proud of him.

The redhead then proceeded to describe his week with Takumi, who sometimes added a few details to his story or corrected a few things. He didn't notice the blonde's glare when he talked about how they started putting things at stake, and received a nasty elbow in the ribs when he almost mentioned the kisses. He gave the other a surprised look, but then assumed that he was just being shy and evasively mentioned something about washing the dishes. He kept going, trying not to give it much thought, but Takumi's reaction still disturbed him a little. After all, didn't he kiss him on his own will just a few minutes ago?

Megumi was waiting for them in the cellar when they reached the Trattoria, and she gave Takumi the brightest smile Souma had ever seen when she laid her eyes on him. She then told him about how worried she'd been, and it took her a few minutes to notice their unexpected guest.

She froze when she saw Souma.

"Are you…" she started hesitantly.

"Hi Megumi! It's been a while, right?"

"Souma… What are you…? So you really…?"

She recovered from her surprise way faster than he expected, and soon started scolding him for not answering her calls when she had to talk to him, and keeping Takumi in his lair for so long without giving them any news. She only stopped when he apologized, and they all went up to the restaurant.

The bright daylight seemed weird to Souma, since he only came out early in the morning or late at night. Looking at Takumi, it appeared that they both stopped being used to it. He put his hand before his eyes and was once again surprised by the feeling of his fingers on his bare forehead. That was another thing he'd have to get used to…

As soon as Takumi laid a foot in his kitchen, he transformed completely. Souma had already noticed something similar during the past week but this time, the change was even more drastic. It was like the king was back in his castle. Then, everything happened really fast. Isami and he had a very serious discussion about what happened during his absence – which wasn't much since the restaurant was closed – and talked about the possibility of opening on the following day.

Souma felt a bit left out in this, so he turned back to the three others, who were also in the middle of a conversation.

"I think you'd pass Fumio's test easily this time," his father said.

"If you think so… But can I really leave so soon? I've already talked about it to Isami but…"

"It's not like you'll stop working in the restaurant. And you don't have to move in immediately," Gin opposed.

His father then caught Souma's questioning eyes and told him about the _Résidence de l'Étoile polaire_ , and Megumi's plan to move in soon.

"That's where we're living at the moment," he added. "So unless you're planning to remain underground forever, I think you should come with us."

Souma accepted immediately, eager to see for himself this place full of cooks to challenge and new people to meet and learn from. As for the stuff he left in his underground kitchen, he decided not to touch them until he was sure he was going to move out. And if he really found a new home, he had to at least tell Emile about it, so he'd have to come back either way.

The Aldinis joined them a few minutes later and told them that they were planning to re-open on the following day. They had already called Satoshi and Norah, who were going to check if the staff could be operational so fast after their forced vacation. They were pretty optimistic about it.

"By the way, we're all invited to the _Résidence_ tonight to celebrate Takumi's reappearance and the unexpected father and son reunion," Isami announced. "So Megumi, if you feel ready, maybe you could take this opportunity to retake Fumio's test?"

"W-what? So soon?"

"We're not going to throw you out of course. But since you were planning to do it anyway, why wait? I'm sure you're more than ready now."

"But I don't have any ingredients! I don't even know what I'm going to cook!"

"We still have a few hours to spare until the evening, you know? You have more than enough time to think about your dish and buy the ingredients you need."

"Yes … I guess you're right. I'll do that then."

Seeing her determined expression, Isami then turned to the detectives and announced that he was going to the police with Takumi to tell them he was back. They had time on their hands and it would make no sense to delay it.

"Well… I'm not sure they will like the truth," Jouichiro sighed. He then turned to Souma and asked "By the way, I guess you're not here legally, right? Your passport probably expired a while ago…"

"Well… I asked for a new one a few years ago, and I'm sure it's still valid."

"But still, you're not here legally, are you?"

"To be honest, I've never really thought about that. I mean, I came here legally, but since I wasn't exactly supposed to stay for that long … I guess not," Souma admitted.

His father and Gin sighed again.

"We'll have to take care of that, too… But don't worry, you'll be fine. I already have a plan. Let's just hope no one asks for an ID in the meantime."

"I guess you'll have to find a more plausible version to explain Takumi's disappearance then," Gin added, turning back to Isami. "One that doesn't imply Souma."

"We'll do our best," Isami assured. "Let's just hope they don't ask my brother too many questions."

"What did you tell them again?"

"The truth. I left Takumi in the restaurant and when I came back, he wasn't there. Anything could have happened. But knowing him, it's perfectly possible that he just got lost for a whole week," the sommelier smiled.

"Come on Isami, I'm not that easily lost."

"Do you want to talk about that day you got lost in the supermarket and Mom and I had to look for you for two hours?"

"We were six!"

"Florence airport? Twice in a row?"

"Okay, I get your point," Takumi surrendered. "But still, what am I supposed to tell them? I know Paris is big but there's no way I could have been lost for that long."

"Then, how about you unexpectedly went to Bleuenn's place for the week and didn't have time to tell me?" Isami offered. "Brittany isn't all too far, after all. Her Internet is terrible, you forgot your mobile phone and she's totally the kind of person who would kidnap you like this."

"I guess… But what if they ask questions? Or call her?"

"They don't have her number. And even if they ask for it, which I highly doubt, we can still call her in advance to tell her about it. She's a decent liar and I'm sure she will love the story."

"If we do that, I'm never going to hear the end if it…" Takumi sighed.

"Serves you right for spending a whole week with some stranger and not coming back at least once to tell me you were okay," Isami replied.

Takumi winced, but didn't protest this time.

"Anyway, I guess you're right," he finally agreed. "Let's do that."

"Perfect. So if we all have our plans ready, how about we split and meet here when we're done?" Gin asked.

Everyone agreed, and since Souma couldn't do anything to help his father give him a normal, legal life again and certainly wasn't going to the police with the Aldinis, he decided to stay with Megumi and go shopping with her.


	12. A New Home

Surprise! It's me!

Well, it's not really a surprise since I've been pretty regular these days... But let's say it is.

Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 12: A New Home**

 _La Résidence de l'Étoile polaire_ stood there, as impressive as Megumi remembered. Although she already made friends there and came to visit them from time to time, she still found the building quite intimidating. However, if everything went according to plan, this would be her future home. Hopefully, she would stop feeling vaguely scared of it soon…

As prepared as she was right now, she really feared Fumio's judgment. But at least, Souma was by her side this time. Even though he couldn't help her any more than he did while she was buying her ingredients, she still found his presence quite reassuring. Somehow, with him around, she felt slightly less afraid of failing in front of her boss…

"You're going to be fine," Isami said from behind her. "Think about how happy Yuuki will be to see you move in here."

Megumi smiled weakly at the thought and felt slightly better as she entered the building. Fumio came to greet them, but as soon as she saw Souma and Takumi, she paid no attention to the others and immediately started scolding them for being so irresponsible and letting everyone worry about them so much. She eventually turned to greet her, and her admission exam began.

Megumi felt way calmer as soon as she started cooking. For once, she decided to go full Japanese, although she couldn't help using a few things she learned while working in an Italian restaurant.

While she was focused on her dish, she vaguely heard something about Souma having to take the test as well if he was going to stay there with his father.

"Good thing I bought a few things with Megumi then," he said. "Are there other ingredients here I can use?"

"Whatever doesn't have a name on it is yours to use. But that doesn't make much."

Souma soon joined her in the kitchen, checking on ingredients, and he seemed satisfied with his search as he started cooking as well. She could have felt pressured by that, since the redhead was obviously a way better cook than she was and her dish might seem boring in comparison, but she chose to ignore it. At that moment, she was only focused on how to make a great dish the warden would like. And for that, she didn't need to pay attention to what the other was doing.

Megumi finished first and presented her _udon_ to Fumio. As she tasted it, the old woman started smiling. According to Satoshi, she had never refused anyone whose dish made her smile. Plus, it really looked like a good smile… The warden finished it slowly, only stopping to make a few comments or ask questions. Megumi didn't dare to think of it as a good thing, but it surely was, right? After taking her last sip, Fumio put down her bowl and announced:

"Welcome to the _Étoile Polaire_ , Megumi."

As soon as she heard that, Yuuki rushed to her to give her a big hug while Ryoko watched from a distance with an amused smile.

As for Souma's improvised dish, none of the people who knew him were surprised when he also passed the warden's test.

"That's great! Now Takumi's reappearance party can become Megumi's and Souma's welcome party as well!" Yuuki exclaimed joyfully.

.

Takumi didn't expect to see so many Japanese people among the residents of the _Étoile Polaire_. Of course, there were people from all over the world, but the real heart of this eclectic family was the Japanese group, which was quite surprising. What wasn't, however, was the identity of the real heart of the place, Fumio excepted: it was none other than Satoshi Isshiki.

The head waiter was currently walking around the room, half naked, making sure everyone was at ease and had enough to drink. As always, he was acting as if his lack of clothes wasn't the main potential source of uneasiness around. Actually, it made it very easy to recognize the new members of the dorm: they were the only ones looking unsettled by it. As for the others, they behaved as if everything was perfectly normal, Isami included.

"You'll get used to it soon," his brother assured him.

Of course, Takumi already knew of this weird habit of his, but it still felt strange to see it there, around so many people and innocent women. Megumi didn't seem disturbed by that, probably because she once stumbled upon him walking around the attic and sometimes spent her free evenings here with her friends. There was, however, a tan blonde girl with a butcher knife who looked like she wasn't quite used to it yet, despite wearing very little clothes herself. That seemed to amuse the girl next to her to no end, and she kindly tried to keep her mind off it by offering some of her dish.

Most of the residents had brought food to the party, and Takumi recognized a few Florentine specialties among the dishes. Just walking around the room felt like a small travel around the world, but he was surprised to notice that everyone was speaking French, even when they shared the same native language. Isami explained that it was an unspoken rule in the Residence. According to Satoshi, it was to force them to improve their French and find a job more easily, but also to help them mix with residents from different cultures. And given the unexpected influences he noticed in some of the dishes, it seemed to work pretty well.

Takumi lost sight of Souma quite early in the evening. Soon after they both got a good scolding from the dorm's "Moms" for disappearing and making everyone worried, to be precise. He could have felt annoyed by that, since it was the third time already, but he knew that he deserved it. And Souma even more so…

If the redhead didn't seem at ease around so many people at first, his open and social nature soon came back and he was quick to make new friends. Takumi was happy for him. Happy and relieved, actually, although he couldn't explain why…

All in all, the evening went pretty well for all of them. However, since they had to work the day after, the twins decided to leave early. Souma walked them to the door and as they were going to leave, he asked Takumi to stay for a second. Intrigued, he sent his brother ahead, saying that he would catch up with him soon. As Isami slowly walked toward the nearest metro station, clearly reluctant to leave him alone even for such a short time, the blonde turned back to the other and asked him what he wanted.

"I might have to go back and get some things from the underground kitchen in the next few days. Is it okay to go through the Trattoria?"

"Well… Sure," Takumi replied with a surprised look. "But you could have asked that in front of Isami, you know."

Seeing Souma's expressions still felt weird to him and with the way the moon shone on his face, it almost looked like his mask had just come to life. He had to repress the urge to touch it, just to make sure it was real.

"There was something else, actually," the redhead declared as he leaned toward him.

Wait, was he really going for a kiss? Takumi freaked out. He wasn't going to just kiss him on the lips like that, was he? Sure, it wasn't the first time, but there wasn't anything at stake now, and they weren't in the underground kitchen anymore and…

By pure reflex, Takumi turned his head, making Souma's lips meet his cheek instead. He then went for the other cheek, turning this romantic kissing attempt into a simple greeting. Perfect.

"I'll see you around, Yukihira," he managed to mutter as he ran to catch his brother, who had been waiting for him just outside the _Résidence's_ gates.

He remained silent for the whole trip, apart from a small "Nothing important" when Isami asked him what Souma wanted. He couldn't exactly follow his train of thoughts, but the main point was the following: what happened underground had to stay underground. Especially the whole kissing part. Why would he even do that in the first place? He wondered. It wasn't as if he liked Yukihira, after all… So there wouldn't be any more kissing, ever. And actually, he was going to forget it ever happened. That was better for everyone.

.

For the week that followed his return to the Trattoria, Takumi didn't have time to think about Souma. Or anything else, really… He had so much to do and so many new ideas to try that for the first couple of days, cooking had been the only thing on his mind. That, and the overpowering guilt he felt every time he thought about how he failed Isami and what a terrible brother he was. And since Lucie had never learned basic things such as subtlety and knowing when she might hurt someone's feelings, he was reminded of that quite often…

But life still went on, Isami came back to his usual chubby self and soon, the only trace left of his absence was the slowly shrinking pile of Norah's pastries in the employee's room. She came back with an absurd amount of them, explaining that she baked them to relieve her stress from Takumi's disappearance. She didn't know what to do with the pastries anymore. The house was full of them. Her family couldn't bear to see them. Her husband had nightmares about being attacked by evil baklava. The neighbors were afraid of her now. The kids were crying. She was desperate to get rid of them. They were still disappearing though, mostly thanks to Satoshi who brought most of them back to the _Résidence_ where they reportedly had a huge success. Halima, a Lebanese chef Takumi saw at the party, was especially impressed and absolutely wanted to meet her.

For the first few days, everyone noticed how glad Takumi was to be back in his kitchen, especially now that he felt passionate about cooking again. However, by the beginning of the second week after his return, Isami already started feeling like something was off with his brother. It felt to him like boredom was already starting to creep up, and the blonde grew more restless every day, obviously waiting for Souma. He always tried to look unaffected when the employees from the _Étoile Polaire_ mentioned him, but although he didn't seem to realize it, he still talked about him _a lot._ Mostly, he was complaining about how unreliable he was, saying he would come soon to grab some stuff and forgetting about him the day after. Apparently, he was way too busy challenging everyone in the _Résidence_ to focus on anything else.

The truth was that Takumi didn't know if he wanted to see Yukihira or not. Part of him felt betrayed about being demoted from his official rival title, but the part that remembered his last kissing attempt was glad he didn't have to face him. But still, not coming like that … that was rude. How dared he forget him like that?

However, his rival's absence had a very positive effect on him, since it made him even more determined to become someone he couldn't ignore. Not that it really worked, though…

Eventually, once he'd beaten most of the chefs in the _Résidence_ , the redhead unexpectedly came to pay them a visit one day. As he saw him, Takumi's face lightened like a small sun for a second. Then, his expression switched to a discontent frown and he started complaining about him not coming earlier and lecturing him about his carelessness.

"Won't your stuff get stolen if you leave them like that?" he asked grumpily.

"Of course not. People know they're mine, even if I'm not here. Also, I got most of them already. I managed to go back there through another entrance so everything is fine."

"So why did you come back then?"

"I'm bored, so I thought I could cook something with you…"

In Isami's eyes, Takumi's torn expression was priceless.

"Well, I don't have time to entertain you. I'm working right now," he finally replied.

"You're not working now," Souma remarked.

"I have stuff to prepare."

"I can help!"

"You have nothing to do in that kitchen! If something happens, I'll be held responsible. And you'll probably get in trouble as well, since you're not even supposed to be in France…"

"Don't worry about that, my dad had that all covered."

"How did he do that so fast?"

"I have no idea… I tried to ask, but he wouldn't tell me."

"Whatever. I don't have time for that!"

"When will you then?"

"We're closed during the afternoon," Isami intervened before the blonde could say _'Never!'_ or something similar. "You can come back after the last lunch service."

Takumi sent him a death glare that he chose to ignore. These two obviously had issues to solve, and he knew his brother would never get anywhere if he let him deal with it on his own. Also, seeing them cook together sounded like fun…

"Great!" Souma replied. "I'll go see if I can find Emile in the meantime. I really wanted to talk to him about the _Étoile Polaire_. I'm sure he'd get along well with Fumio."

"Are you trying to hook them up?" Isami asked with a smile.

"Nah, that's more Yuuki's style. I just think he'd be interested in the place."

"See you later then!" he greeted as Takumi went back to his kitchen without a word.

As promised, he came back after lunch. And though he didn't want to admit it, Isami knew his brother was really happy to spend the whole afternoon with him. He actually felt pretty bad when he had to remind him that they needed to get ready for the evening service.

"Hey, can I stay for dinner?" Souma asked suddenly.

"Well … we're not going to refuse a customer," Takumi replied.

"What, you'd make me pay?"

"Because you wanted to eat for free?"

"Come on! Did _I_ make you pay when you were underground with me?"

"That's different!"

"It's exactly the same! The only difference was that you also took my clothes!"

"Fine!" Takumi exclaimed after a shocked pause, red as a ripe tomato.

"Did you really borrow his clothes?" Isami asked, trying his best to repress a laugh.

"I wasn't going to wear dirty clothes for a whole week…" his brother replied with an embarrassed look.

"I guess Souma _at least_ deserves a full course meal then…" Isami concluded with a smile.

Of course, the clothes borrowing sounded logical, now that he thought about it. But still, having the confirmation that his brother had worn Souma's underwear was hilarious. He'd have teasing material for weeks, with that…

.

Souma was really curious to see Takumi in action for real customers. Of course, he had already seen what he was capable of during their duels, but he knew that the situation required completely different skills. Plus, he really wondered how the rest of the personnel was and what made the place so popular.

At first, he feared that he'd feel lonely, eating on his own in a restaurant. However, he soon became friends with two waiters working that evening: Maxime, who always managed to complain in the funniest ways, and Lucie, whose main pleasure in life seemed to be teasing her colleagues. All in all, his evening was pretty entertaining and by the end of his meal, he knew exactly why the customers loved to come here.

He was ready to leave when two people coming in caught his attention. One of them, more precisely…

"I can't believe I accepted to come here with you again…" the man complained.

" _Shinomiya-sempai? Is that you?_ " he asked in a surprised voice, automatically switching back to Japanese as he saw him.

The other looked at him with a shocked expression for a moment.

" _Yukihira?_ " he asked slowly. " _It can't be…_ "

" _So it's really you! Well, I guess I should have expected that, since your main restaurant is in Paris and all, but…"_

" _But … you went missing. When did you come back?"_

" _A couple of weeks ago? That's a long story. I was called the Phantom around here, so you might have heard of me if you're a regular."_

" _I'm not-"_ he started before getting interrupted by the woman with him.

" _So the Phantom was you all along? Well, if you've worked under Shinomiya, that's no wonder you ran away and hid from society… He's so scary!"_

He stayed with them until their meals arrived, and Inui almost killed him when she learned what he forced Megumi to eat. And she said Shinomiya was the scary one…

.

"Souma is really fun to be around," Lucie remarked the day after his visit. "I can't believe he's the Phantom that caused us so much troubles."

"I know," Maxime replied. "I never thought I'd be able to forgive him so fast after he almost made all of us lose our jobs. I didn't even feel like reproaching that to him when he was here."

Takumi gritted his teeth as he overheard their conversation. Everyone seemed to be so close to Yukihira now... Not that he was jealous, of course. Why would he even be jealous? It was great that he could make friends so easily. And not spend his time with him… That would be annoying if he hanged in the Trattoria all the time, anyway. So really, he was happy for him. Although if he became friend with the whole staff, he might come here more often. But not for him, this time… Which would, again, be perfectly fine.

Takumi sighed and shook his head, trying to think about something else. It wasn't like he cared about what Yukihira did, anyway. He had more important things to focus on, at the moment. And the light grapefruit rind taste that filled his mouth every time the redhead ignored him or got close to someone else had nothing to do with that!

.

"I received a call from Megumi earlier this morning. She's sick and she won't be able to work today…"

The announcement came unsuspectedly one morning.

"And as you may remember, Zenji is out of town this week…" Norah added, making the news even worse than they already were.

"So you mean I'm going to be on my own?" Takumi asked. "Or can someone else replace her?"

As he said that, he started thinking about possible replacements. Satoshi could be a fine choice, for instance. He was, after all, an excellent cook himself. Actually, that really brought out the fact that they had a serious shortage of kitchen personnel here. It was probably time for them to hire someone else… But that was off topic for now. First, they had to focus on finding a short term solution.

"Well, she said Souma offered to replace her until she feels better," she replied. "I think it's a good idea. We already know he's a very capable cook, and I can take care of the formalities. What do you think?"

"So you mean … I'm going to work with Yukihira?"

"The final decision is yours, of course. But though you've probably never cooked _together_ , you're still quite used to each other. So I think it's the best solution we have here."

"Yes, I guess you're right… Tell him to come as soon as possible, if his offer still stands."

"Hi Takumi!" Yukihira greeted as he entered the restaurant with Satoshi, startling him. "Have you heard the news? I hope you don't mind me working with you today."

"Yukihira, you're here already? Well… I guess it can't be helped since we can't find anyone in such a short time."

"Thank you for your help, Souma," Isami added.

"It's nothing!" Yukihira replied. "I'm actually quite excited about today! It's been such a long time since I last worked in a restaurant."

"You better not lag behind," Takumi huffed, trying to deny how happy and excited he felt about cooking with him. "What I need is an aide, not a burden."

"Don't worry about that, I'll do just fine," he replied with a grin.

In the end, "doing fine" was an understatement. Of course he needed some guidance at first, since there were things he wasn't used to in Italian cuisine. But all in all, working with him felt just like a dream and by the end of Megumi's convalescence, a week later, he almost felt that Yukihira had become an essential part of the team. And so did most of the employees, actually…

At the end of his last day, Takumi was sure of one thing: if he had to hire another person to work in the kitchen with him, it had to be the redhead. He had already forgotten why he was so reluctant to having him here in the first place, and since the other didn't try anything weird during his time in the restaurant, he saw no reason not to keep him.

That's why, after the last customers left and all the cleaning was done, he asked Yukihira if he could stay for a minute. As he heard that, Isami, who was in the kitchen at that moment, decided it was time for him to do a quick inventory in the cellar.

"Just call me when you're ready to leave, okay?" he said as he left.

That sounded like a pitiful excuse to leave them alone, but Takumi didn't have time to tell him that he could stay, and that it would actually be better if he did. He sighed, but gave up on the idea and turned to Yukihira.

"I just wanted to tell you that you really did a great job this week."

"See? I told you I'd do just fine!"

"You know, I've been thinking about hiring a new person. So if you're planning to stay in Paris, would you like to work here?"

"You mean under you?"

"Well … yeah. Why? Do you have other plans?"

"Not really. I mean, it might be time for me to get a job, open my own restaurant or something like that. But you know, I'm not planning to work under someone's orders all my life."

"Sure, I understand that. And I'm not planning to keep you here forever – although I wouldn't really mind. But since you don't seem to have plans right now, I thought you might be interested in the offer," the blonde shrugged.

"In that case, that sounds perfect," Yukihira said with a smile. "I'm getting tired of this inactivity. And I'd sure love to spend more time with you."

Takumi felt himself blushing at the words and averted his eyes in embarrassment, not knowing what to say. He sure wouldn't mind spending more time with him either but…

As he wondered what he could reply to that, he felt Yukihira's fingers lift his chin to make him look at him, just like he did before kissing him underground. But surely, he wasn't going to kiss him now, right? His eyes averted to the redhead's lips, and yet he barely noticed them coming closer. When they touched his, he froze completely. Why was he doing that? Why was Souma …?

He closed his eyes for a second, indulging in the kiss. Had he been honest with himself, he'd have admitted that he missed it.

But then, reality hit him. They weren't underground anymore. They were on the surface, where anyone could come in and see them. And anyway, that was just a thing that happened because the situation was … well, it was _different_! He never actually wanted that.

He pushed Yukihira away from him and glared at him with an angry frown.

"What do you think you're doing?!" he hissed.

Yukihira gave him a surprised look.

"Well I thought-"

"I don't know what you thought," he interrupted, "but you were wrong. Now get away from here and forget about what I said! I don't want to see you around here ever again!"

The other looked lost for a second, visibly torn between rejection and anger.

"Fine," he said coldly as he stepped out and left the restaurant.

Takumi let out a sigh, and realized that he was shaking. His legs felt like they were ready to give in any moment, and he had to grab a counter until that feeling passed. What the heck did just happen? He didn't know. And he didn't want to think about it either. There were more important things to focus on than what Souma … no, what _Yukihira_ was thinking when he did that.

He took a deep breath, and when he felt better, he told Isami he was ready to go.

"So, how did it go?" his brother asked on their way home.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Didn't you have something to ask Souma?"

"It wasn't important. I don't want to talk about it," the blonde replied absentmindedly.

That's when Isami realized that something was _really_ wrong with his brother.

"Did something happen?"

"Nothing happened! I just wanted to tell him I was glad to have him as Megumi's replacement, but then…"

He stopped, and Isami knew he was never going to continue.

Feeling that it was time to drop the thing that had been bothering him for the past few weeks, he confessed:

"I saw you hold his hand, before we left the underground kitchen."

His brother froze and he continued:

"You two seemed so close back then, and now you're calling him by his last name even though that doesn't make _any sense_ , and you're clearly trying to distance yourself from him as much as possible. And yet, you're still complaining when he doesn't give you enough attention. What is going on between you two?"

Truth be told, he knew _exactly_ what was going on. He didn't have the details of course, and he'd never seen Takumi act like this before, but the situation seemed quite obvious to him. What he wanted was to hear his brother say it himself.

"Nothing!" he shrieked, clenching his fists tightly. He looked ready to cry. And he sounded ready to cry too, when he added: "We're just rivals, and that is all there will ever be between us, is that clear?!"

Isami sighed. It seemed that he would get nowhere tonight, and he knew that insisting would be useless. Takumi might be a terrible liar, but it was almost impossible to get anything from him when he was acting like that. The best thing to do was to wait until he opened up by himself, and the sommelier knew it.

"Fine," he said softly. "I won't insist on that so just calm down, okay?"

Takumi took a deep breath and stood still for a few seconds.

"I'm sorry I got mad at you," he eventually muttered.

"It's fine, don't worry."

Apparently, Souma's case wasn't going to be closed tonight either…

* * *

Huehuehuehuehue... I'm not done here. I'm SO not done! Trust me, I finished writing chapter 23 last week.

As always, I hope you enjoyed it. Feel free to tell me what you think, I'd love to hear it!

See you in two weeks!


	13. Food Apocalypse

Hi everyone! Me again!

As you'll probably see in this chapter (and in the following ones), I'm really having lots of fun with the _Étoile Polaire_ residents. I have tons of ideas for characters, and I can't use them because none is relevant to the current story. My life is sadness...

Enjoy!

* * *

IMPORTANT NOTE (relatively speaking): You should listen to Handel's Sarabande while reading the first part. The whole scene is sort of based on it, and I find it funnier this way.

* * *

 **Chapter 13: Food Apocalypse**

Nothing could have prepared Ikumi Mito for what she witnessed when she came back from work that night.

As soon as she passed the doors of the _Résidence_ , she knew something was off. The place was way too silent, and there was a strange atmosphere around, as if a great tragedy had just happened here.

She went to the common room to see what was wrong, and as she laid eyes on the scene before her, Handel's _Sarabande_ immediately started playing in her head. She heard whimpers in the room, coming from people sitting on the ground in fetal position. " _Los tentáculos… Los tentáculos…_ " the one closest to the door kept repeating, looking in the distance with a distressed expression. She recognized Alessandra, one of the official Moms. Felipe was sitting next to her, a hand on her shoulder, softly whispering to her in Spanish and trying to soothe her. As she went through the room, Ikumi noticed a few other groups like that. There was always one visibly traumatized person, and one or two people sitting by their side, trying to comfort them. It didn't seem really effective, however. As for the other people in the room, they were just standing there, whispering between them while exchanging worried looks. What could that mean? Ikumi wondered. What happened here?

She noticed Yuuki and Ryoko in a corner and walked to them, determined to solve this mystery.

"We don't know…" Ryoko explained with a somber look. "Souma came back from the Trattoria this evening, looking very upset. As you can imagine, we tried to ask what happened to him, but he didn't answer and locked himself in his room. He came out a few minutes later and…"

Her voice broke and she stopped there, unable to finish her sentence. Yuuki put an appeasing hand on her shoulder and continued:

"Zenji came to ask him something, and he ended up with a mouthful of … I don't know what that was, but I really don't want to know either. He dropped on the floor. We had to carry him to his room. I think Shun is still with him. He said he would tell us when he got better, but we haven't seen him ever since… Then … a few other people tried to ask Souma what was wrong, and they all received the same treatment. We never knew what happened to him…"

"He … he even started attacking people who didn't talk to him!" Ryoko explained with a broken voice. "He just came to unsuspecting, _innocent_ people and said… 'Hey … would you like to try out a new dish?' I saw him, Ikumi! His smile was terrifying! It was … it was the smile of a _monster_! But his victims … they didn't realize it soon enough. They didn't even know what was happening! Not yet… They couldn't do anything to defend themselves. And then … Alessandra tried to stop him, but…"

She averted her eye.

"Her heroic sacrifice will not be forgotten," Yuuki concluded solemnly. "We don't know what's gotten into him, but please Nikumi, no matter what happens…" she paused to put her hands on Ikumi's shoulders and look at her in the eyes with an unusually serious and somewhat desperate expression. "No matter what happens, _don't come anywhere near Souma!_ Do you understand? He's dangerous right now!"

"I- okay. I won't," she replied with an unsettled look.

"Actually, his father stepped in, so I guess this place is safe again. For now, at least…" Ryoko explained quietly. "We should probably go to bed now. It's been a long night for everyone, and I'm sure you're tired as well."

"But … what about them?" Ikumi asked, looking at the victims scattered around the room.

"We gathered them here, thinking it would be better for them. But there's nothing we can do now, apart from staying with them until they get better. John has already recovered, so I don't think the others will be long."

"I see. I'll be off then. Goodnight," she said softly as she left the room.

She wasn't there to witness this tragedy. She understood their pain of course, but there was nothing she could do to help now. Hopefully, Souma's … no, _the Phantom_ 's wrath would be over by tomorrow. Until then, all she could do was pray for the souls of his poor victims.

.

The week that followed Megumi's return to work was an especially gloomy one. She was lucky enough to escape Souma's rampage, since she was sleeping already when he came back from the Trattoria, and she was quite surprised to see what the _Résidence_ had become when she woke up the next morning. Obviously, she didn't share everyone's bad mood… Moreover she was as used to Souma's "experiments" as she could be, so even if she understood their pain better than anyone, she knew everyone would be alright in the end.

However, she never thought the bad vibes would reach the Trattoria as well! As soon as she saw Takumi's long face, she knew that something must have happened between Souma and him. But she had no idea what, and it was obvious that neither of them wanted to talk about it.

Actually, in Souma's case, no one even _dared_ bringing up the subject, in fear that his bad mood shall rise again. And if it did … God have mercy on their souls. That's what Alessandra told her, at least. And it seemed to reflect everyone's mood quite well. As the redhead once said, chefs were real drama queens sometimes…

In the end, the poor Megumi spent the following days between her gloomy home, which was slowly recovering from the "tragedy" that happened there, and her gloomy workplace where, fortunately, not everyone was affected by Takumi's bad mood. However, it was only because they didn't work directly with him. Unlike her… But he still made efforts to be nice and pleasant to her, so she couldn't complain too much. She just wished things could improve soon between those two…

.

Since he worked in a restaurant, Isami saw lots of new faces every day and he took great pride in being able to remember most of them. And although he was certain that the group of people who'd just arrived in the Trattoria had never come here before, the dark skinned woman among them looked extremely familiar. However, he had no idea where he could have met her before…

As he came to their table to see if they needed help with their choice of wine, he hoped that it wouldn't lead to anything awkward. He didn't know what could go wrong exactly, but he hated being unable to recognize someone when he was so sure they met before.

"Excuse me but you look quite familiar," the mystery woman said after a while. "Aren't you … the one who came to the hospital with your brother – I think it was your brother – for a sprained ankle right? It wasn't so long ago but I can't remember when exactly…"

"See Isabelle?" one of her friends intervened. "You're losing track of time! I told you you needed a proper social life!"

As they started arguing playfully, Isami suddenly remembered when he saw her.

"You're the doctor who took care of him in the hospital!"

"Yes, that was me! So tell me … how does his ankle taste now?" she asked with an amused smile.

Isami chuckled.

"He's way better now, thanks to you. Actually, he's the one who'll cook your dinner."

"Oh really? I'm glad to hear that! Not that I did much about the ankle though, since it's best to leave it alone. But I can't wait to try the food! Especially if it's cooked by someone who takes taste so seriously."

"So he's the one you told us about?" a man asked. "The Italian guy who told you to put honey on his ankle to make it taste sweeter?"

"Yes, that's him! I'm surprised you guys remember…"

"The way you told us, it seemed like an interesting story. Especially since you weren't in a good shape yourself at the time…"

"But at least, now we know for sure that he wasn't a dream!"

"See? I told you! I don't dream patients like that!" Isabelle exclaimed. "Anyway, I don't know who gave him a painkiller, but that was a terrible idea…"

"I wish I'd seen that. It sounded hilarious!" said one of the women.

"I think I told you already, but he usually doesn't have an accent," Isami added. "I mean, we both grew up in France and he has never spoken like that before…"

"Which makes it all better," another replied. "Your brother really sounds like an interesting person."

"Well … he sure is fun to be around," he agreed with a soft smile.

 _When he's not in denial and dragging the whole restaurant in his bad mood_ , he added mentally with a sigh.

.

As he came out of the kitchen, Takumi heard joyful laughs coming from the main room. They were in between service at the moment, and he thought that he should probably go there and join them. He knew he hadn't been cheery for the last few days, and he felt that it was time for him to make an effort. He came in with a smile, but he dropped it the moment he saw who the staff was laughing with.

Yukihira…

" _What are you doing here? I thought I told you not to come back!"_ he wanted to say. But as soon as he saw him, the redhead stopped laughing with the others. His eyes then passed on him like he was nothing, and he turned to Megumi to announce:

"Well, now that I've brought you what you asked, my work here is done. I'm going to leave, I don't want to bother you. See you later!"

He then personally greeted everyone in the room … except for him … and left.

Takumi stormed back to his kitchen and didn't leave it until the restaurant closed for the night.

.

Yuuki was extremely proud of her plan to force Souma and Takumi to make up (and make out, if everything went well). The moment Megumi told her about their shared bad mood, she knew there was something going on between those two. Something … _romantic_!

She already had suspicions before, but now it was crystal clear: they had feelings for each other and didn't want to admit it! And since Souma wasn't going to do anything about it, she decided to take matters into her own hands and … give him a little nudge in the right direction.

All she had to do was to tell Souma that Megumi forgot something in her room, and that she asked her to bring it. But since she was busy at the moment, wouldn't he go in her place and give her what she needed?

So simple and yet so perfect… That was genius!

She took a moment to thank sappy teenage movies and romantic comedies for being such a great source of inspiration.

She was so excited to finish work and come back to the _Résidence_ to see Souma's happy face! As she arrived, Fumio told her that he was still out, and that raised her expectations even more. If he wasn't back already, that could only mean one thing!

She clearly didn't expect him to look so annoyed when he came back…

Could it be that her perfect plan failed? She had to make sure.

"Hey Souma, did you bring Megumi her scarf?"

"Yeah. She thanks you," he replied with a blank expression.

"Did you stay there afterward?"

"Nah, they looked busy. I just took a stroll. It's such a beautiful day, I really don't know why Megumi wanted a scarf…"

"I told you already, it's new and Lucie absolutely wanted to see it!"

"If you say so."

"And you didn't … talk to … someone?"

"Well, I talked to a lot of people. There's always someone between service so the place is quite fun to be around at that time."

"And how is Takumi?"

Souma's expression looked even darker as she asked that.

"Don't know. I didn't talk to him."

So her wonderful plan … didn't work? She'd prepared it so carefully for _nothing_? All because Souma was too stupid to take a hint?! That was unacceptable!

"How could you not talk to him?!" she exploded. "After everything I did to make you two make up! I gave you a good excuse to go there and see him, and you did nothing? Don't you understand? If you want to get him, you have to do something! Force him to acknowledge you! How can you be so…"

She stopped suddenly, sensing danger. Souma's head was bowed down and he was … smiling? But that was clearly not a good smile.

She recognized it with horror. It was _the Smile_. The one he had on that fearful night…

She knew she had to run away as fast and as far as she could. But there was something about his aura that was almost hypnotizing. She was like a frail mouse in front of a hungry snake. She couldn't look away as he took a small box out of his bag and slowly opened it to reveal … something. She didn't want to know what.

"You should take care of your own business, Yuuki," he said with a threatening voice.

Did her chickens back home feel this way before she killed them? Or was this feeling closer to a deer in front of a hunting rifle?

The other grabbed a pair of chopsticks as he continued:

"Time to say 'Aaaaah'…"

She stepped back with a nervous smile. She couldn't turn her eyes away from him.

"Wait, Souma, I can explain-"

Opening her mouth was a mistake. She knew it. But her mind was so blank at that moment that she forgot all common sense.

The thing Souma gave her soon revealed to be salted anchovies marinated in honey. It felt like some horrible garbage monster covered with lots of tiny irritating hairs was holding her in its slimy arms, grappling her everywhere, even…

She wanted to scream, but her mouth was full of that overly salty and sweet horror. She fell on the ground and barely noticed Nikumi rushing to her help. Although the other girl was right beside her, it felt as if she was miles away. She thought she heard Ryoko's voice from a distance.

"Souma, what are you doing? I thought you were done traumatizing everyone!"

She wanted to warn her friend, tell her to stop and run away before it was too late. But the anchovy monster… The anchovy monster was attacking her, and she was completely at its mercy…

"We already told you to stop it with the gross dishes! I know you're in a bad mood these days, but it's no reason to make everyone pay for it!"

" _Run away!"_ she wanted to scream. But she only managed to mutter: "How can honey taste so horrible?"

"Where did you even pull that from?" Ryoko continued, ignoring her warning. "And don't even think about making me-"

"I know what to do!" Souma suddenly exclaimed, interrupting her. "Thanks Yuuki!"

He rushed out of the room without paying attention to anyone.

"So glad I could help," she managed to say as she spat whatever was still left in her mouth in the bowl Nikumi brought her. She grabbed a glass of water and abundantly rinsed it to get rid of the taste, but the gross aftertaste still remained.

It was worth it, Yuuki tried to convince herself.

.

Souma came right back to the Trattoria on the following day.

"Can I talk to Takumi?" he asked when he came in.

"Sure, I'll go get him," Isami replied as he went to the kitchen.

The blonde soon came out with a curious expression that immediately switched to a dark and threatening look.

"What are you doing here, Yukihira?" he spat "I thought I told you I didn't want to see you again."

Again with that last name… That was starting to be annoying. People didn't even do that in France! That made no sense!

"I didn't come here just to see you," Souma explained calmly. "I came here to challenge you."

Takumi's face slowly turned into a suspicious frown.

"What do you mean?"

"I came here to get my revenge for last time. We made a deal back then, and even if we're not underground anymore, it still stands."

The best thing about Takumi, Souma thought, was that his face was an open book. And given how red he was, he clearly remembered what said deal was.

"I don't know what you're talking about, and I don't have time for that anyway," he still replied as he turned away his head.

"What? Are you afraid to lose?"

Takumi tightened his fists before rushing to him and dragging him in the restaurant's office.

"Why did you have to bring that up in front of everyone?" he hissed as soon as he shut the door.

"It's okay, they don't know what we agreed on."

"Shut up! I don't want to, okay? I don't even know why I accepted that in the first place!"

"But … we've never really talked about what I wanted from you _exactly_ , right?" Souma asked with a smug grin.

"What do you mean?"

"I said _'I want you'_. You obviously decided to interpret it as a sexual thing, and I didn't correct you because your reactions were just hilarious. And maybe that's what I really meant, who knows? Certainly not me. But the thing is, that could mean pretty much anything. So let's get more precise here."

Takumi was clearly mortified now, which made Souma's grin even wider. Red and shaking was one of his best stances. It wasn't as good as the way he looked at him when he slowly opened his vivid blue eyes after a kiss of course, but… Well, that was different.

"What do you want?" the blonde asked gingerly when he finally recovered from the shocking revelation.

"If I win…"

Souma paused for a second, savoring Takumi's tense look.

"…you'll have to spend a whole day with me."

To his surprise, the other didn't seem relieved one bit. Actually, he still looked extremely pissed off… But it was Takumi after all, so there was no way he could refuse a challenge, right? And even if he did, he could still…

"Fine," the blonde finally replied. "And if I win, I don't want you to come anywhere near me again. That includes staying clear from the Trattoria."

Souma pursed his lips. That was harsh, he thought. But as Yuuki said, they couldn't remain in this awkward situation forever. If he wanted the other to stop pushing him away, he had to do something.

"Okay, let's do that. I propose a free fight, like last time."

"I like the idea," Takumi approved. "But for once, why not plan it in advance? That would give us time to find ingredients and test our ideas beforehand."

Was he trying to buy time? Souma wondered. But even so, it sounded like a wonderful idea.

"Let's say in two weeks?"

"Deal."

They would have lied if they said they didn't miss this.

* * *

I hope you enjoyed it, and as always, feel free to tell me what you think!

Really, I'm having lots of fun writing it but given the lack of feedback these days, I'm also starting to wonder if I'm doing it wrong or something...

Anyway, see you in two weeks (just in time for my babies' duel, that's perfect)!


	14. The Final Showdown

Hi everyone! Big news: I'm done with the redaction of this story! I still have to proofread it and all, but I'm not going to drop it now. Also, I might be a bit faster now? Unless I use my new free time to write other things, I don't know yet...

Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 14: The Final Showdown**

Being a passionate person, Takumi had a tendency to use strong words whenever he got emotional. The problem was that they were often way stronger than he intended to. A good example of that was " _If I win, I don't want you to come anywhere near me again_ ". Because if he was really honest with himself, he had to admit that he didn't want Yukihira to completely disappear from his life. He just wanted him to stop trying to kiss him and do all those things that made him uncomfortable and shook all of his certitudes! If their relationship could once again be based purely on cooking, that would be heaven. But he was caught in the heat of the moment, so instead of that he said " _I don't want you to come anywhere near me again"_ and now it was too late to take back those words. Plus, it might make Yukihira think he had a chance. And he didn't. Because Takumi wasn't interested and wanted none of that. Also, he clearly wasn't obsessed with the memories of their kisses and never wished he could have done that more when he had the chance.

"It's not too late to change that rule, you know," Isami remarked when he told him about the conditions of their duel and how neither of the possible outcomes suited him.

"No, I'm not going to do that. It's a bad idea."

He had felt compelled to tell his brother more about what happened between Souma and him in the past few days, and contrary to what he feared, he actually felt quite relieved about it. He still kept his contradictory feelings for the redhead secret, however. But Isami wasn't easily fooled, and he obviously knew a lot more than Takumi wanted him to.

"You could also just tell him you're not interested, you know," his twin remarked. "I'm pretty sure he would understand."

Takumi remained silent.

"But you don't want that, do you?" the other continued.

"It's too late to think about it, Isami. I have to find a winning dish now."

"And you probably won't find anything if you don't really want to win. So you should maybe take some time to reflect on it before you start thinking about cooking."

"The situation is pretty clear to me. I don't want to go on a date with him or do anything of the sort. And if I can win against him four times in a row … then it means that he's no match for me after all. So in the end, I guess it's better this way."

Takumi sounded so sad when he said those words… However, this argument was convincing enough for Isami to drop the subject. Even if his brother won, it wasn't as if they were talking about a binding contract or a legal decision anyway. It was better to let him be and see what happened. He could still do something about it later on, depending on the results.

Also, when did Souma start talking about a date? He was quite certain he didn't hear anything about that when he absolutely didn't eavesdropped on their conversation…

"I guess you're right," he sighed. "Now, what are you going to do?"

.

"Come on Alessandra, I need your help here!" Souma pleaded.

"I said no!"

"But you said I could come to you anytime if I needed help with Spanish cooking!" he insisted.

"That was before you forced me to eat those … squid horrors! You don't deserve my help."

"You can't do that, he really needs you here!" Yuuki intervened. "I mean … I've tasted one of his dishes of hell too, so I know how you feel. But I've forgiven him. And you should, too."

"Good for you, but I won't. It took me hours to recover! I can still taste it whenever I think about it for more than … okay that's it, I can taste it. Thanks…"

"I said I was sorry," Souma pointed out.

"That doesn't change anything!"

"But Alessandra, that's for a good cause!" Yuuki insisted. "If he loses, he won't be able to see Takumi for the rest of his life! If you don't do it for him, do it for love!"

"Yes, she's right!" Souma agreed. "Do it for the love of cooking!"

Yuuki turned to him and gave him a look that clearly meant _"Shut up Souma, let me do the talking."_ She then turned back to Alessandra and continued:

"I know he's been awful for the past few days, but wouldn't you if the person you loved ignored you for no reason?"

"I'm pretty sure Takumi has a reason for ignoring him," Alessandra replied with an annoyed look. "Are you sure you didn't make him taste some of your so called 'experiments'?"

"Of course not. I really don't get why he's been acting so differently since we're back to civilization…" Souma replied once he recovered from Yuuki's words. He deserved it though. In Alessandra's opinion, 'awful' was too nice to describe his recent behavior.

"Please Alessandra," Yuuki begged. "For love?"

The Spanish chef sighed, knowing she had lost already. She still couldn't forgive Souma for what he had done, or at least not for now, but she couldn't resist Yuuki's pleading look. Her sad puppy eyes got her every time.

"Fine, I'll help you," she surrendered. "But Souma, if I do, you have to promise never to try your experiments on anyone in this place ever again! Is that clear?"

"Even Megumi? She didn't seem-"

" _Especially_ Megumi! I can't believe she's been so patient with you. That girl must be an angel or something…"

"We don't deserve her," Yuuki agreed solemnly.

Souma reluctantly accepted the condition, and Alessandra let out a triumphant smile. Now that everyone was safe, she could finally sleep in peace.

"So, when do you want to start?" she asked.

"When I have everyone ready," Souma replied. "I'll need some advice from a few other people."

He then headed out of the room, but stopped midway and called:

"Yuuki, can you come with me please? I might need your persuading skills again."

"No problem, I'm on it!" she exclaimed happily.

.

Takumi and Souma's duel took place in Alice's restaurant, as it was decided when they first planned it. The albino had stormed in the Trattoria while they were discussing the conditions of their cooking battle, and she made it clear that she was very upset no one told her about the Phantom having finally been caught. She had just come back from a trip to Denmark followed by a seminar on molecular gastronomy and of course, she was very excited to meet the infamous Phantom.

She had offered her restaurant as the venue as soon as she heard about the duel and refused to hear any contestations. Actually, no one really complained about it since it was very convenient to set the event in a neutral place. She obviously insisted to be part of the jury, which both parties agreed on. They had also decided early in the process to invite Emile, since the old man had always been perfectly impartial. Ryou was declared the third member.

The two challengers met in front of the restaurant on the day they had agreed on. Takumi was a bit tenser than usual, but his eyes were full of determination. As for Souma, he seemed as relaxed as ever. The blonde made a comment about it, but he seemed confident that his opponent would start being serious once in the kitchen.

Compared to the redhead's extravagant number of ingredients, Takumi's dish was clearly going to be quite simple. However, Alice knew it didn't mean anything. The quality of a dish couldn't be judged by the number of ingredients but only by the way they were processed. Still, she was pretty curious to see what the ex-Phantom would come up with.

During the whole process, she was torn between her curiosity to see what the two chefs were doing, and her will to keep it a surprise until the end. Seeing how restless she was on her seat, Emile started talking to her. At first, Alice was quite wary of that ragged old man the contestants had brought. However, years of having Ryou to protect her from all kinds of dangers had made her quite confident around complete strangers, no matter how weird they seemed. A few minutes were enough for her to understand why Takumi and Souma seemed to think so highly of that man, and that kept her curiosity at bay while they cooked their dishes.

Takumi finished first and brought three portions of sole covered in a creamy sauce. Baby potatoes, baby carrots, asparagus and other vegetables were disposed around the fish in an elegant way. Combined with the light vanilla aroma coming from it, the whole plate gave a striking impression of elegance. Eating it and breaking that beautiful harmony would almost be a crime, it seemed. Yet, Alice's curiosity was stronger than that feeling, and the smell was so alluring that she couldn't resist it.

It tasted even better than it looked. The fish's taste blended perfectly in the sauce's sweet vanilla flavor, and eating it felt like diving in a beautiful lagoon, surrounded with clear blue water. As she relaxed in the warm sea, she felt something brushing against her bare legs and turned around to see a school of colorful vegetables swimming by her, their soft acidic taste adding a whole new world of aromas to the dish. Finally, as she thought she already knew it by heart, she felt a sudden burst of a stronger, sour flavor. Surprised, she asked:

"What was that, just then? Did you put something on the fish, Takumi?"

"There are small touches of redcurrant coulis here and there," he explained with a smile. "I hid them under the fish to keep the surprise."

"That's a great idea! I clearly didn't expect that, but it's a very nice surprise."

That dish made Alice even more eager to see what the Phantom would do to counter such a delicate, satisfying creation.

Needless to say, she clearly didn't expect an _omurice_. She guessed Takumi's victory was settled then… It was quite disappointing, especially given her high expectations for the infamous Phantom that terrorized the whole neighborhood for months and influenced Megumi in such a positive way. But in the end, he was probably better with disgusting dishes than actual cuisine…

Yet, Emile didn't seem to share her opinion. His curious look and eager smile were enough to make her go back on her first impression, and she decided to give the redhead a chance. Maybe he would surprise her, who knew?

After Takumi's colorful dish, seeing the aggressive yellow of the omelet felt like going from a lively coral reef to an endless sand desert. But the most important part in an _omurice_ , she reminded herself, was the rice.

Or so she thought.

She'd never had an _omurice_ before. That was too plebeian for her. So now was her time to finally try it!

As she cut the shiny omelet dome, she was overwhelmed with a strong yet delicious smell of seafood.

"Aw, you both decided to go for seafood," she noted. "You two are so in sync."

She snickered as she saw Takumi's face go red.

"But that's quite dangerous, you know, since Ryou here is a specialist… Right, Ryou?" she said as she turned to her aide.

He barely acknowledged her. He'd have to pay for that later on, she decided. But after she tried the rice, because it smelled wonderful and it was…

"Wait, why is the rice black?!"

"It's been cooked with squid ink."

Now she was more curious than ever. As she took the first bite, she felt like a nomad, crossing the desert and finding an oil well. It was so good it almost felt overwhelming. The rice was full of shrimps, tiny bits of carrots, zucchinis, red and green peppers… All of them kept a distinctive flavor but still managed to blend in the dish. It wasn't only oil she found in that desert, she thought. It was a whole treasure! A colorful, tasty treasure!

She ate half of her plate before she even knew it. So that was the Phantom's real abilities… No wonder Takumi spent a whole week challenging him and losing track of time in the process.

"So you lose with a risotto and you come back with an _omurice-_ paella?" the blonde chef asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, according to Alessandra, it can't really be called a paella. But she still seemed to like it, and I used the techniques she showed me so technically … yes."

"Well, it's you after all, so I guess I should have expected something like that…" he sighed.

"Do you want to try it? I have made a portion just for you."

"Sure," he accepted with a surprised look.

At that moment, the challenge didn't seem to matter to either of them. However, Emile kindly reminded them about it, and they both started looking serious again. They even seemed a bit tense, but for Alice, the outcome was obvious.

Souma was the winner.

Takumi's face lost its colors as he heard that. As for the champion, he had a grin brighter than a thousand suns and…

"Yes! I knew it! That's so great Souma, now you can finally go on your date!" someone exclaimed, rushing into the restaurant and making everyone turn around in shock.

"Yuuki … what are you doing here?" Souma asked with a confused look.

"Oh, I … hem … just coincidentally happened to be here, you know…"

Yuuki had never intended to rush into the restaurant. She just … wanted to spy a little and see how the challenge was going. But then Souma won and she was so excited! Let's say she got a bit … overwhelmed?

Everyone was looking at her now. Most of the people in the room only seemed surprised to see her, but then, there was Takumi, whose glare could only be described as deadly. If looks could kill, she would have been dead a billion times already. And another… And another…

So many deaths…

She guessed it was too late to fix her mistake now. Souma had been very clear that she wasn't supposed to know about this dating thing, since Takumi was against it and…

He was going to kill her…

Or, more precisely, Takumi was going to kill Souma, who was then going to rise from his grave to kill her with poisonous food. Given how the blonde's murderous glare had turned to the redhead, it seemed pretty likely to happen…

Anytime now…

Yuuki found herself praying that someone would come and rescue her.

"Really, a date? No one has told me about a date!" Alice exclaimed excitedly, turning everyone's attention to her and effectively saving the poor Yuuki from a certain death. "So what are you two going to do?"

"It's … I haven't really decided yet…" Souma started with an embarrassed look.

"I told him to do all the romantic things like riding a _Bateau Mouche_ in the sunset!" Yuuki declared enthusiastically, immediately forgetting about the danger she'd just escaped and ignoring the one she put herself into by saying that.

"You know … it will be full of tourists so it's actually far from romantic," Isami countered. "Also, it's really just a touristic thing. No actual Parisian does that kind of thing. It's like going up the Eiffel tower, you know."

"What, you mean you've never been there?" she asked with a bewildered look.

"Of course not! We don't have time for that!"

"Okay, my world just shattered right now. Thank you Isami," Yuuki pouted.

"I'm sorry to hear that. But it's the truth."

"So what should they do then?"

"I know!" Alice exclaimed, her eyes glinting with excitement. "They should go to Disneyland!"

"That's a great idea!" the other girl approved immediately.

"Why Disneyland?" Souma asked.

"Because going to amusement parks is a typical date thing! Trust me, I've watched lots of romantic series and dramas!"

"Well, since I see you're all busy planning my next day off, I'll be leaving," Takumi announced bitterly as he walked out. "Also, amusement parks are out of the question," he added before closing the door.

"Wow, he doesn't seem thrilled about that…" Alice remarked.

"Most of the rides make him sick and he's scared of heights, so…" Isami explained.

"I didn't mean about that – although it's pretty sad that he can't enjoy the rides… But I meant about the date in general."

The door suddenly opened to reveal Takumi.

"Also, I'll have my revenge, Yukihira! Don't think you're better than me just because you've won this once!" he warned before leaving again.

Souma grinned. _That_ was the Takumi he knew!

"Okay, forget what I said about him not being excited," Alice said after a surprised pause.

"He's in so much denial. That's adorable…" Yuuki declared.

"It's also annoying," Souma remarked. "I really don't get him ever since we left my old place…"

"He wasn't like that back then?"

"Well … at least he called me by my name."

They all remained silent for a moment. Then, Souma remarked:

"By the way … we haven't even set a date for that."

"The Trattoria is closed on Mondays," Isami declared. "So I think it's pretty safe to plan it for the next one."

"Maybe we should discuss it together…"

"I think it would be better as well, but knowing my brother, I'm pretty sure he's going to sulk for a while and then he will refuse to talk about it. Unless you really want to do something special, you can probably talk about what you want to do once you see each other."

"Yeah, I guess you're right."

"What? So all my careful planning is going to waste?" Yuuki complained.

"And you're not going to Disneyland?" Alice added, looking like a hurt puppy.

"Tell Takumi I'll come to pick him up at ten next Monday," Souma announced. "Or better, we should meet in front of the Trattoria, since it's pretty central and I don't know where you guys live…"

Isami took a moment to consider the idea before agreeing.

"Now, if you don't have anything to add, I'll be off as well," the sommelier then declared.

After his departure, Yuuki turned to Souma.

"So, about this date, I have tons of awesome ideas I haven't mentioned yet!"

* * *

I hope you liked it!

I don't know how Yuuki managed to grow so much on me, but I love it! She deserves to be loved.

See you in two weeks!


	15. When The Moon Hits Your Eyes

Hi everyone! Just in time for Christmas, I present to you… Chapter 15!

Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 15: When the Moon Hits your Eyes…**

Takumi was late. Souma had been waiting for half an hour already and though he arrived a bit early, it was still way past the time they set for their meeting. As he checked the clock on his phone for the tenth time already, he wondered if the other wasn't lost or something. Given the way Isami talked about him, that sounded pretty realistic. However, there was no way Takumi would get lost on the way to his own restaurant, right?

Souma sighed and decided to call if he had no news in the next five minutes. In the meanwhile, he went back to the few texts he'd exchanged earlier with the blonde, to set the details of their date. They were all short, cold, and factual. It seemed that Isami was right about his brother's way of coping with this defeat… Past his first reaction of surprise and anger, when he accusingly asked the redhead how he got his number, Takumi only agreed to meet in front of the Trattoria at ten on Monday, as Souma had offered earlier. They also decided to see what they would do then, depending on their mood or the weather. The redhead had a whole list of things to do in his pocket (courtesy of Yuuki), so he wasn't worried about that. He didn't know if all of her ideas were realistic, but that was a good starting point.

Soon before the five minutes were over, Souma noticed a blond head from the corner of his eye, and looked up to see Takumi approaching. For a few seconds, his mind went completely blank.

Of course, he already knew that the other was pretty stylish and always paid attention to what he wore. But this time, he had really outdone himself. He looked just like a model escaped from the glossy pages of a fashion magazine. It was a shame that he decided to wear a newsboy cap and sunglasses on top of that, Souma thought. It was almost as if he didn't want to be recognized…

"Hello, Yukihira. Sorry I'm late," he greeted coldly as he arrived near him.

"You're still not done with that stupid last name thing…"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

Souma sighed and gave up on this for now.

"What's in your backpack?" the blonde asked with a slightly curious tone. "It seems pretty heavy…"

"I thought we could eat outside, since the weather is so nice. So I prepared food for a picnic."

"That sounds great. You should have told me, I could have made something too," he replied with a voice that wasn't enthusiastic nor disappointed, like he was just stating a fact.

"I wanted it to be a surprise."

There was a moment of awkward silence.

"So, what do you want to do?" Souma finally asked.

"I don't know."

Silence.

"Do you have an idea?"

"It's quite late already, so I guess we could walk to a park?" the redhead offered.

"Do you have one in mind?"

"Yuuki gave me a list," he replied as he grabbed his second list in his pocket. "Do you want to have a look?"

Takumi took it and studied it for a while.

"There are a few I don't know. And the others are either not as nice as they seem or too far from here."

He then put it down and offered:

"I know of a great place around here. It's a bit far, but we can still walk there. Plus, the area is pretty nice."

Souma accepted with a smile, glad to see that Takumi was helping him a bit. He still didn't seem happy to be here, but that was better than nothing.

They walked in silence for a moment, until Takumi asked with a detached tone that wasn't enough to hide a hint of curiosity:

"What did you cook, by the way?"

"It's a surprise!"

"Okay."

They fell silent again, and Souma could tell it wasn't the right kind. He had to think of something that would make Takumi open up, but even his few attempts to talk about food soon proved unsuccessful. He really hoped that the blonde wouldn't be like that all day, or it would be incredibly long for the both of them…

"Are we still far from your place? My shoulders are starting to kill me…" Souma asked after almost half an hour of awkward silence.

"We shouldn't be far. Do you want me to take the bag?"

"I'll be fine. But thanks for the offer."

"You just said your shoulders were killing you…" the other pointed out.

"If we get there soon, I'll be fine."

Takumi shrugged and kept going. After another half hour however, it soon became clear that they were lost. The blonde looked more and more unsure, and Souma's shoulders were really starting to hurt a lot.

"Are you sure you know where we're going?" he finally asked.

"It's around here, I know it," Takumi replied. "Maybe if we take a turn here… No, I don't recognize the place."

Isami's warning about his brother's total inability to find his way suddenly came back to the redhead. He did mention something about never letting Takumi lead him somewhere unless it was in the direct vicinity of the Trattoria. Places he often went to were fine as well, apparently, and that's why Souma decided to trust him this time. But in the end, it seemed that the other didn't go to that park as often as he assumed…

"Maybe we could ask someone?" he offered.

"We'll be fine," the blonde replied dryly. "I guess."

It took them another half hour to find the place, and Souma seriously considered calling Isami for help. Takumi didn't offer to take the bag again as he was completely focused on remembering where the place they were looking for was. It was in the vicinity for sure, but where exactly, he couldn't tell. He eventually took out his phone and looked on the map, only to find out that they had been walking around it for the past forty five minutes.

"We'll be here in a few minutes," he announced, trying to hide his embarrassment. Souma wasn't in the mood to taunt him anyway, which was a first. "But since we'll have to find a nice spot once we arrive ... are you sure you don't want me to take the bag?"

"If you don't mind," he accepted as he took it off, letting out a huge sigh of relief.

"That's pretty heavy," the blonde remarked as he put it on his shoulders. "How much food did you prepare?"

"You'll find out soon," he replied with a playful smile.

They walked silently to a small park that was, indeed, pretty nice. There were few people there since it was Monday, and the two soon stopped hearing the sounds of the circulation. That silence added to the peaceful atmosphere of that pretty little green spot, and Souma almost felt like they were out of town.

"How do you even know this place?" he asked after a while.

"I used to come here with my parents when I was a kid. But I haven't had an occasion to come back in a while, so…"

"It's fine, don't worry," the redhead quickly brushed off. "Now let's find the best spot!"

Takumi smiled for the first time of the day and led him to a remote place under a tree.

"What do you think?"

"It looks perfect. Let's unpack here, I'm starving."

Yukihira had prepared a feast. As he took out the blanket from the top of the bag, Takumi found a multitude of small boxes, each of them probably containing a different dish. He wondered if all of them were edible though… He really wouldn't be surprised if some of his infamous Phantom experiments were hidden among them. He'd have to be extra careful with that and make sure the other ate some of each dish before trying them himself…

"Will you need help with the blanket?" the redhead asked.

"If you don't mind."

They took everything out of the bag, which made a dozen of boxes full of food, two thermos containing tea and coffee, and a big bottle of water.

"No wonder it was that heavy," Takumi remarked. "Did you really cook all of that?"

"Most of them, yes. The only ones I didn't cook at all are…"

He checked a few boxes and set two apart.

"…these two. They're deserts from Halima so we'll have to keep them for later. I hope you're not tired of them, after the ones from Norah…"

"If she's as good as her, I can never get tired of them."

"I'm not a specialist but having tried both, I think they're equal. Also, we'll have to keep some for Norah. That's why Halima made them in the first place, she said it was some kind of challenge."

He then proceeded to open the other boxes, revealing a variety of dishes. There was a bit of everything: three types of _onigiri_ including curry, chicken with _comté_ cheese, and even ratatouille, small sandwiches, tiny onion quiches, raw vegetables with several dips… He even brought two portions of the green mango salad he prepared when they were still underground, and it was even better than Takumi remembered.

"You told me once that of all the things I've prepared so far, it was one of your favorites," Souma explained. "So I thought it was perfect for the occasion."

That made Takumi smile.

"Thank you, Sou- Yukihira."

"Seriously Takumi, why do you keep calling me that?"

"Because that's your name?" the blonde stated, arching an eyebrow like it was the silliest question he had ever heard.

"My _last_ name," Souma reminded. "No one calls me that except for you. I told you already that you could drop it. What's up with you?"

"I don't know what you're talking about, Yukihira," the other replied with a stubborn expression, like always when the subject was brought up.

Souma sighed and decided to drop the issue. Again. But Takumi would call him by his first name by the end of the meal, he would make sure of that! For now, he didn't want to fight with him. Not now that he finally managed to have him all for himself. Instead of arguing, he simply dipped a carrot in a sauce and offered it to the blonde.

"Try this."

He half hoped that Takumi would eat it directly from his hand, but was ultimately disappointed as the other delicately grabbed it before observing it closely.

"Is something wrong?" the redhead inquired.

"It's not one of your weird experiments, right?" Takumi asked with a suspicious tone.

Souma sighed, but still ate a bit of it in front of the blonde to prove him that there wasn't any trap. Like he would do something like that…

Seeing that it looked safe, Takumi carefully bit his carrot. Although the sunglasses made it hard to see, Souma was certain that the other closed his eyes softly to better taste it, like he always did whenever he enjoyed something. He swallowed it and announced enthusiastically, all traces of bad mood or suspicion forgotten:

"I love it! Is it anchovies in the cream?"

"Yup. There's also a bit of cucumber and some fresh chives."

"That's great! What else do you have?"

"Hummus, guacamole, and a spicy tomato one."

"We're never going to eat all of that, are we?"

"Don't worry, I'm sure we'll find something to do with the leftovers. Plus, we're not in a hurry."

"You're right. But still, we'd better start now!"

He was smiling. Takumi was smiling to him. It felt like a tiny miracle. How long had it been since he last made the other smile like that? Too long. Way too long. Souma needed more of that smile in his life.

He also needed food, his stomach reminded him.

They soon started eating eagerly while discussing each of the dishes like the two cooking nerds they were. Time didn't matter anymore. It was perfect.

.

"Wait a second Souma. You did _what_ … to this dangerous looking man?"

"Not much, I just made him eat something that reminded me of his looks."

They had been talking for hours, most of the dishes were finished and more importantly, it was the third time Takumi called him by his first name in a row. Success!

"Seriously? The way you're telling me, you could have been killed."

"That's why I had to leave."

"And then you started following strangers in the middle of the night. Really Souma, I'm amazed you're even alive right now."

"But it always turned out fine, right?"

 _Four_ , he thought triumphantly.

By the time they decided to put away the dishes and try Halima's desserts, Takumi hadn't called him "Yukihira" a single time. He was also smiling a lot more. More than Souma had ever seen him smile, now that he thought about it… Except maybe for when he won against him? But those never lasted as long.

Each of his smiles made the redhead want to kiss him more, and if he hadn't learned his lesson from his last failed attempt, he would have done it a long time ago. However, he didn't want to scare Takumi again, so no matter how tempting it was, that wasn't going to happen anytime soon.

"I surrender, I'm full…" the blonde announced as he finished his piece of _sfouf_ and laid down on the ground.

"Surrender? That's unusual coming from you…" Souma pointed out slyly.

The other turned to him and lifted up his sunglasses to give him a questioning look.

"Could it be that I'm a better eater than you?" he added.

"I could still eat!"

"That's not what you just said…"

Takumi made a move to sit up and grab something to prove his point when Souma burst into laughter.

"I'm just kidding, you don't have to force yourself. I can't eat anymore either."

He laid down as well with his arms crossed behind his head, and looked at the clear blue sky between the leaves. They remained silent for a moment, and this time, it was a good kind of silence. The silence of two people who had a nice chat along with a nice meal, and who were just too content and lazy to speak. Souma could almost fall asleep right now… But that would be a shame, he thought, so instead he asked:

"So … what do you want to do now?"

"I don't know," Takumi answered lazily. "We could take a nap. Or we could take a walk to make up for all the food we ate… Unless you have a better idea?"

"A walk sounds good," the redhead replied in the same sleepy tone. "I haven't had a nice day outside in so long…"

"You haven't had time for that earlier?"

"I did. But it was still a bit chilly, and it's gets boring when you're on your own…"

"I see…"

There was another moment of silence. Souma was getting drowsy.

"Do you want to go now?" Takumi asked.

"When you're ready."

"I am ready. I'm just waiting for you…"

Souma sighed and slowly rolled to his side before getting up with a grunt.

"Okay, I'm up. Your turn."

The blonde seemed as unhappy to get up as he was. He stretched before helping Souma pack up. The bag was way lighter than before and his shoulders felt better as well. The weather was amazing, Takumi was smiling, and they just had a wonderful meal. Maybe it was going to be a good day after all.

.

"Come on, you're telling me that you've never had an ice cream there?" Takumi asked with a shocked expression.

Or at least, Souma thought it was a shocked expression. The sunglasses made it hard to tell… Was it really how the blonde felt when he was still wearing his mask? It must have been terrible! He understood now why the other was so eager to get rid of it…

"Well, I've never really had a chance to go eat outside. And who would serve a weirdo with a mask around here, anyway?"

"Right… But now you're outside with your face uncovered, so you have to try it! They're the best ice creams in Paris!"

"Do you mean … now?"

"Of course! It's the perfect time for a snack anyway."

"I thought you couldn't eat anything."

"I feel better now. Plus, they have really nice sorbets. The lemon one is especially good. You don't have to be hungry to enjoy it!"

"If you say so… And do you know how to get there from here?"

"Where are we again?"

"So you don't…"

Takumi sighed and took out his phone. To be honest, they had plenty of time to get lost in the streets of Paris. For the past couple of hours, they had been walking down a few big alleys, stopping to see some street artists and generally, the blonde just followed him wherever he decided to go because "Hey, that street over there looks nice, let's check it out!"

He studied the map for a moment before saying:

"Okay, I know where we are. It's not far from here."

Remembering Isami's advice and the troubles they had earlier, Souma asked innocently:

"Do you go there often?"

"Not as often as I'd like to, but I still go there pretty much every week when the weather allows it. Why?"

So he could trust him this time. Good, Souma thought as he dismissed the other's question with an evasive "No reason".

The ice creams turned out to be as wonderful as Takumi had described them. Despite feeling quite full, the redhead couldn't resist trying the most unexpected, creamiest flavors, while the other was more reasonable and settled for lemon and mint.

"I've tried all of their flavors, and these two are the best," he explained. "Especially the mint one. It really tastes like freshly picked mint, it's amazing. I've never found another that stood the comparison."

"May I try?"

"Sure. But first, why don't we settle somewhere? There's a nice place just around the corner."

This time, Takumi acted without hesitation and they soon reached a quiet square surrounded with trees. By the time they sat on a bench, Souma had already eaten half of his ice cream while the blonde had barely touched his. He was taking his time to savor it and was actually licking it, which the redhead found adorable. Especially the way he seemed so focused on it…

Takumi had put off his cap when he entered the ice cream parlor and had left it in his bag ever since. He also seemed to have forgotten his sunglasses on the top of his head, so for the first time of the day, Souma could actually see his whole face. After a while, the blonde tore his eyes from his ice cream and turned to him with a surprised look.

"Oh, you wanted to try it, right?" he asked innocently, offering him his cone.

Souma thanked him before tasting both flavors, and he was forced to agree with Takumi on the mint one. He usually wasn't a fan of mint ice cream, but this one stood on a whole new level. He then offered his own cone, asking:

"Do you want to have some of mine too? There isn't much left already, but…"

"It's fine, I already know how it tastes."

"As you wish," he replied as he quickly finished it.

It took Takumi a few more minutes to eat his, which gave Souma some more time to observe him and muse over his childish, careful way of licking it methodically. He even stopped eating it from time to time, studying it to find strategic angles! The blonde turned to him as he took his last bite and gave him an amused smile.

"There's a crumb on your cheek. Which isn't surprising given your inelegant way of eating…"

"Where is it?" Souma asked, rubbing his face.

"It's still here," the other announced.

He then reached toward his face, in the same way he did when he first took off his mask underground, eons ago.

"There," he said, reaching far closer to his lips than Souma expected. "Got it."

They exchanged a look that was way too long to be comfortable.

"Thanks," Souma said absentmindedly, his eyes still on the other.

How long were they going to do that? Was it just him or were their faces getting closer? It wasn't just him, right? Takumi's eyes were on his lips now. Surely, that had to mean something. Could it be that …?

"Souma! Is that you?" a voice behind him interrupted.

The person who said those words had a strong Russian accent, and Souma was sure he knew that voice. He turned around swiftly and his eyes fell on someone he never thought he would see again.

"Serioga? It's been such a long time! What are you doing here?" he asked with a smile.

Apparently, the past wasn't done coming back to him…

* * *

I'd like to mention the fact that Sergei wasn't supposed to come back. Or the Russian mafia in general. I wonder what this story would have been like if I had decided not to include them in the first place…

I hope you enjoyed, and see you in two weeks!


	16. Like A Big Pizza Pie

Happy New Year!

I hope you all had great holidays. If anything, here's my late gift.

Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 16: … Like a Big Pizza Pie …**

The last thing Takumi expected from his day out with Yukihira was to meet a Russian man from the redhead's past and end up in a spacious car with smoked windows, going to a destination unknown. That Sergei man didn't seem hostile toward them though, so that was a good point. Probably…

The situation had been awkward at first, but the two men looked very happy to see each other and soon started talking about what they had been doing since the redhead left. The Russian then offered to go see his old boss, and it's only when Yukihira turned to Takumi to ask him what he thought that the other finally seemed to notice him.

"And you are …?" he started.

True, the blonde thought, what was he? "I'm his rival" seemed a bit too much in this kind of situation. "Friend" didn't really fit given his past behavior, although it got way better in the last few hours. Actually, now that he thought about it, he was technically his "date". … Or was he? He started blushing at the thought. But that wasn't really a _date_ , right? More like just friendly hanging out, sharing ice creams, staring at each other longingly like... Well, even if it was a date – and it could _hardly_ be called that – the other didn't have to know about it! Also…

"His name is Takumi," Souma answered for him. "He's a chef in his own restaurant."

Takumi slapped himself mentally. Of course, giving his name was the obvious answer…

He didn't really know if the second part was necessary though… However, he quickly changed his mind about it, because as soon as he heard that part of the presentation, Sergei's expression went from suspicious to somewhat friendly in less than a second.

"You look young, it's impressive that you already have your own restaurant."

Without realizing it, they started discussing his cuisine in details. That made Takumi trust him enough to follow him wherever he was planning to take them. Sure, Yukihira was with him, but he wasn't sure Isami would have approved of this decision…

They soon reached their destination, which revealed to be a huge mansion right outside of Paris. Most of the people there seemed to recognize the redhead and they immediately asked him where he'd been and what happened to his trademark mask.

"It's on my bedroom wall now," Yukihira explained with a grin.

That made them laugh. Or, more precisely, that made the merriest ones chuckle, and the grimmest smile. They seemed to like him a lot.

Sergei, who left moments ago, soon came back and told them that the boss wanted to see them. Of all the people they'd met here, he was by far the happiest to see the redhead. He raised from his chair as soon as they entered and welcomed Yukihira with open arms.

"Souma, I'm so happy to see you," he exclaimed cheerfully – which was a bit scary in its own way, Takumi found. "I really missed your cooking, you know. I hired a new Japanese chef after you left but no matter how good he is, that's just not the same…"

They soon started talking about their good old days in Russia, and it wasn't long until he asked Yukihira to cook something for him, which the redhead gladly accepted.

"Do you want to come over, Takumi? I'd go faster with an aide."

Takumi twitched at the last word, but then thought it could be fun, for once.

"Well, if you insist…" he replied with a smug smile.

Someone led them to a huge kitchen that made their eyes sparkle with wonder. Being able to cook in a place so well equipped would be heaven, the blonde thought.

"So, what are you planning to cook?" he asked Yukihira once he stopped marveling at the furniture.

"That's a tricky question… Why don't we check the ingredients first? That could give me an idea…"

"You're the chef," Takumi replied with a shrug.

"We could make an _oyakodon_ ," the other said as he looked in the fridge.

He then checked in the reserve and gasped.

"Takumi … check out all this sesame oil! I haven't seen that much since … since I left the Russians in Paris, actually."

He paused for a moment.

"Forget about the _oyakodon_. We're making _tempura_."

"Sounds nice. But you could also mix both ideas and go for a _tempura don_ …"

Yukihira turned to him with an enthusiastic grin.

"I love it. Let's do that!"

.

"It's even better than I remember!" Mikhail exclaimed with joy. "You improved a lot since you left me, didn't you?"

"I'm glad you like it!" the redhead replied with a grin. "I had plenty of time to improve, so it's really nice to hear that from you."

"Do you want to work for me again?" the other suddenly offered. "I could arrange everything so you have your old position. I'd love to have you back."

Takumi stiffened. Souma seemed to think about this offer way too seriously for his liking.

"Well, it's true that I don't have a job right now, so I don't really have anything holding me back in Paris…" he replied in a thoughtful tone.

Wait… Was Souma going to leave him? Was it really happening? But he couldn't do that! …right?

"So it's settled, you're coming back to Russia with us."

 _No…_ Takumi thought.

"No."

Both men turned to him in surprise. He hadn't realized he'd just said it out loud.

"Do you have something against it?" Souma asked with a curious look, tilting his head slightly like he always did when something puzzled him.

How could he be surprised? Takumi wondered. He spent _weeks_ chasing after him, and now that he finally had what he wanted, he was going to _leave_? Just like that? That wasn't fair!

"I told you I needed someone in the Trattoria, right?"

That was stupid. He said himself that this offer didn't stand anymore, and the position was far less interesting than what the Russian had to offer. A sous-chef in a small restaurant versus the head chef of a multimillionaire or something … he didn't stand a chance. But still, he wasn't going to let Souma vanish from his life that easily.

"So, it seems that we have a little conflict of interest here…" Mikhail declared. "What will it be, Souma?"

Takumi didn't stand a chance. He didn't stand a chance… But he couldn't afford to lose Souma now. The mere idea of losing his rival and going back to his old boredom was unbearable. Thinking about how he would probably never see him again was even worse. It tasted like burnt pasta, unripe banana, raw salt, and all the worst things he could imagine combined. He couldn't let that happen.

"You know what? I challenge you to a cooking face-off," he finally said as a last resort. "Whoever wins gets to keep Souma."

That sounded better in his head, he thought. He didn't know why, but the way he pictured it, Souma would run to hide behind him as he bravely stepped up to protect him. However, given the redhead's weirded out expression, that wasn't going to happen any time soon. He probably sounded more like some kind of slave owner just now…

Still, that was his only chance, and Takumi wasn't going to step back without a fight! Unless the other refused, in which case there was nothing he could do…

Mikhail burst into a booming, joyful laugh.

"You're bold, I like that. Fine then, you'll go against my best chef. What's your specialty again, boy?"

"Italian cuisine."

Mikhail snorted.

"As if this barbaric food stood a chance against my chefs…"

Takumi gritted his teeth. How dared he insult his beloved cuisine? His fighting spirit was quite high already but that… That meant war. He'd make him see the true value of Italian cuisine. He'd make him bow down to its superiority.

"So I guess no one cares about what I want, then…" Souma said.

No one paid attention to him.

"Fine… It's fine," he sighed.

Truth be told, he was quite curious to see how things would turn out…

.

As he went back to the kitchen, Takumi was faced with an unexpected hurdle: yes, for some reason there was a pizza oven here, but aside from that, there was _nothing_ he could cook with. Not if he wanted to stay in the pure Italian tradition, at least. He couldn't even cook _remotely_ Italian. That was a problem…

Sure, he could improvise something. He already had a couple of ideas, just begging to be used. But if he wanted to follow his plan, he needed to get other ingredients.

"Is something the matter Takumi?" Souma asked behind him, making him jump in fright.

"Souma, stop creeping up behind people like that!" he exclaimed.

It happened all the time, but the blonde could never get used to it…

"Sorry, Phantom reflexes…" the redhead apologized with a chuckle. "What's the matter?"

"Ingredients. I can't cook what I want," Takumi sighed.

"You're planning to cook something very Italian, right?"

"How do you know?"

"I saw your face when the Boss called it barbaric."

"How dared he…" he whispered in anger, not even noticing the way Souma still called his _ex-boss_. "But if I don't have any proper ingredient, what I want to cook doesn't matter…"

"You know what? Write down a list for me. I'll go talk to him and see what we can do. I mean, you're on his territory, so it's only fair that you get what you need, right?"

"Sure. Thank you, Souma."

"It's nothing! I wouldn't want to see an unfair match anyway. Although I'm pretty sure you could win without that."

That last comment made Takumi's face brighten up like a Christmas tree.

"Here's paper and a pen," Souma continued. "Write what you need, I'll be right back."

As he started writing down exactly what he needed and where to find it, the blonde's smile didn't fade. Of course he was going to win. And by a landslide at that! Souma wouldn't be disappointed.

When the redhead came back, the list was ready and Takumi looked at him anxiously.

"Was he okay with it?" he asked.

"Sure. He wasn't easily convinced, especially since his chef has already started cooking, but I said I wouldn't accept the terms if you couldn't get what you needed, so… There's a condition, however. No matter what, you only have two hours."

"That will do, I already have what I need for the first part of the recipe. So here's what I want you to bring back," he said as he handed him the list. "I figured that it's a bit late already and you'd have a hard time finding what I need, so you can grab everything at the Trattoria."

"Isn't it closed right now?"

Takumi pursed his lips and reluctantly took out a set of keys from his pocket.

"Here are the keys. I trust you with the Trattoria, which basically means I trust you with my life. Don't lose them or something."

Souma took them carefully, handling them as if they were actual fragile things.

"I won't. I'll be right back, I promise."

He left the room before Takumi could say a thing, and the blonde looked at the door thoughtfully for a moment, a soft smile still on his lips. Then, his expression changed again and he went back to the kitchen with a determined look. He had dough to prepare and no time to lose.

.

As far as he could remember, pizza was the first thing Takumi and his brother learned to cook. When they were still little kids spending time in the Trattoria, his uncle would let them play with pizza dough and they soon learned how to make it themselves. There was something appeasing about working it, and the blonde often found himself making pizza whenever something was bothering him or when he was generally stressed out. That was something Isami did as well, actually.

This time however, nothing was really wrong. For once… He did make lots of pizza for the past few weeks, for some reason, but today, as his hands firmly kneaded the soft, elastic dough, he felt peaceful. His fate was in Souma's hands right now … or actually, Souma's fate was in Takumi's hands … which was in Souma's hands…

Souma's fate was in his own hands right now, and he was merely an instrument to it, but no matter whose fate was in whose hands, Takumi trusted the redhead to come back on time. If the other decided to take his side on his own will, then maybe he wasn't really serious about leaving. That made him feel better about basically forcing him out of a good opportunity just because of his own selfishness.

As he separated his dough in five small balls and flattened them, giving each of them a nice, round shape, he wondered how long it would take for Souma to come back with most of his toppings. Then, the door opened and the redhead entered the kitchen with two bags full of ingredients.

"I managed to find everything, and I brought a few spare ingredients just in case."

He stopped at the sight of Takumi shaping his last perfectly flat and round disc of dough.

"So it's pizza then," he remarked. "I've never seen you make pizza before…"

"That's because I've never had time for that when you were around. But I really want to try their pizza oven. I don't know why they have one here, but it looks terrific and it's perfect for what I want to do."

He then checked that he had everything, smiled at the spare ingredients that looked like tiny nudges from the redhead, and thanked him for everything.

"Wait, did you really bring the whole basil pot?" he suddenly remarked.

"I thought you'd feel better with little Yousuke by your side."

"Her name is Angelina," he grumbled.

"Looks more like a Yousuke to me," the redhead replied with an innocent smile.

Takumi sighed. Why wouldn't Souma admit that Angelina was the best name for this potted basil? Plus, it was his, so the other really had no right to decide on her name.

"Whatever. Now leave," he ordered as he gently pushed the redhead out of the kitchen. "You can't see it until it's finished, okay?"

There was a playful smile on his lips, and Souma stepped out of the room, huffing and grinning at the same time.

.

Mikhail's current best chef was the silent type. His quiet and professional behavior almost made him seem threatening, and while he was cooking in the same kitchen as Takumi, he didn't say a single word. It seemed quite obvious that he disapproved of him talking so casually to Souma while cooking. When the redhead left, he gave him a quick glance full of contempt. _"So childish…"_ it seemed to say. So really, the last thing Souma expected from him was to present exactly the same dish as Takumi and him earlier that day.

And yet, in front of the jury members (that, for neutrality purposes, was entirely composed of very confused and vaguely worried neighbors) were three bowls of _tempura don_.

" _Who's the most childish here?"_ the redhead thought with a smug grin.

Souma had expressly asked to have a portion as well, although he couldn't vote for some reason. It felt weird that he couldn't voice his opinion on his own future, but he also felt glad that he didn't have to openly take sides. Although he already knew what he wanted to do, he still liked Mikhail and Takumi too much to 'betray' one of them.

Contrary to his own version of the _tendon_ that was full of twists and surprises, this one was really prepared by the book. Everything was perfectly cooked and absolutely delicious, and the jury seemed to enjoy it immensely. Mikhail, who was in the same position as Souma, even went as far as complimenting his chef, which he only did when he found the food especially good. One of the judges, who revealed himself to be a renowned food critique, even explained in great lengths why it was a true masterpiece.

Souma found it boring.

Then, Takumi arrived with five small pizzas, and the critique's face fell.

"Well, after such a refined dish, I clearly didn't expect to finish with a pizza…" he declared with a disappointed look.

He regained interest when the blonde served them, however. Like most things Takumi cooked, a lot of care had been put in the presentation. So even if the typical idea people had of a pizza was a bunch of toppings thrown on dough in a complete mess, these looked like tiny mandalas.

Right at the center stood a beautiful flower made of thinly cut raw tomatoes. It was surrounded with a circle of mushrooms and rays of ham, spreading around it like leaves. Olives were filling the gaps in between and tiny pieces of oregano and chopped fresh basil leaves added nice touches of green. It was almost too pretty to be eaten.

Almost.

Everyone looked a bit guilty when they first cut it, but no one seemed to regret that decision. Souma soon followed their steps and really, behind its apparent simplicity, Takumi had hidden lots of wonderful surprises in his mini-pizzas. The tomato flower hid fresh goat cheese, the mushrooms had marinated in a special olive oil mix and more importantly, the dough was thin and crunchy and somehow lighter than usual.

"I mixed wheat and rice flour," Takumi explained when the food critique made a comment about it. "I also advise that you try the crust."

A thin layer of herbs and cheese was hidden within it. It tasted heavenly. The tomato flower added a bit of freshness in the first bites of each piece, and the last ones were crunchy and tasty. It was like a cycle everyone wanted to start again each time they finished a piece. Unfortunately, this wasn't an endless one and the jury's plates were soon empty.

Even Mikhail's plate was. There was nothing left. Takumi turned to him with a victorious smile and asked:

"So? How was this barbaric dish? You seem to have enjoyed it."

"That was interesting," he admitted. "I might have to review my opinion on Italian food, although you obviously picked a few ideas somewhere else."

As Souma expected, Takumi won. But Mikhail wasn't going to let them leave so easily, so as soon as his chef's defeat was proclaimed he asked:

"Why don't you both work for me? I can easily pay the two of you."

"Thank you for the offer, but I already have a restaurant of my own. And I can't leave my brother behind," the blonde declined with a polite smile.

"If he's as good a chef as you are, I might hire your whole family."

"He works as a sommelier, actually…"

"Even better! That's it, I'm hiring all of you!"

For a second, Takumi was too flustered to reply. Of course he expected the man to admit the superiority of his cooking, but this… He cleared his throat to hide his embarrassment, but renewed his refusal. He couldn't leave the Trattoria.

Mikhail was a bit disappointed by the reply – although it was predictable – but he respected good chefs too much to feel angered by it. And here, he was in front of two of the best chefs he'd ever had the pleasure to meet. If these two kept cooking together and refining their skills against each other, they were sure to reach the stars one day. And he was looking forward to it.

"Fine. But I still hope you two will come to visit us in the future. Maybe not in Russia, but whenever we come back to Paris."

Souma accepted with a bright smile. Takumi seemed a bit more reluctant, which was understandable given the circumstances. He still nodded though, which was enough for Mikhail. He smiled. He was really looking forward to the future of these two.


	17. That's Amore

Hi everyone! Since this chapter is a bit shorter than usual and I was done with it anyway, I decided to post it a bit earlier.

I wish you a nice weekend and I hope the new chapter will contribute to it! (or make slightly better at least... or that it doesn't ruin it but I guess you wouldn't be here if you hated this story)

Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 17: … That's Amore**

Takumi and Souma got a ride back to the Trattoria. It was quite late already, but they had to put back the spare ingredients the redhead took earlier, especially Yousuke. They said goodbye to the driver and walked to the door. The owner of the restaurant then reached for his pocket and suddenly started panicking, searching all of them frantically. He turned to the redhead with a worried expression, looking like a lost puppy. Souma smiled and took the keys from his own pocket, holding them at face level as he asked:

"Is that what you're looking for?"

The other then seemed to remember that he didn't get them back earlier and grabbed them swiftly, muttering a quick "Thank you".

"I'm giving you your life back. Thank you for trusting me with it," Souma declared with a smile.

Takumi froze for a second as he heard those words. It was obvious that he had completely forgotten about that. It was too dark for the redhead to see, but he was sure the other was blushing.

"Don't get too full of yourself," he huffed, entering the restaurant.

"Am I?" Souma asked with a smug grin. "You just challenged a powerful leader of the Russian mafia for me…"

The blonde quickly retreated to the kitchen without a word, and he followed him, a smile still plastered on his face.

Under the kitchen light, he could see the chef's embarrassment hadn't faded, and neither had his blush. Souma couldn't see his face, but his ears were bright red. As always, that made him want to nibble them. However, he knew better than that now, so he just leaned on the doorway, asking the other if he needed any help with putting back the ingredients. As he predicted, Takumi said he'd be alright and quickly put everything in order, still careful not to look in his direction. When everything was back in place, he took a deep breath and turned around. He still avoided making eye contact when he declared:

"Souma, I wanted to tell you … I'm sorry about the past few weeks." He paused for a moment, hesitated, and continued: "I don't know why I rejected you like that, or why I've been so cold, but that wasn't fair of me. And you're right, I can't keep acting like you mean nothing to me when I challenged a complete stranger and made you miss such a great opportunity just to keep you by my side."

 _Finally!_ Souma was ecstatic. It took a whole duel against the Russian mafia to take him there, but Takumi was _finally_ admitting that there was something wrong! Now, did that mean…

"I mean, you're my rival," the blonde added. "And I'd be bored without you."

Okay, maybe he asked for a bit too much. But still, that was a huge step forward and Souma was sure he could go even further from there, given enough time.

After a few seconds, Takumi looked up at him expectantly, obviously waiting for a reaction. And here, the redhead wasn't sure how he was supposed to respond exactly. Fortunately, he was saved by the sound of a growling stomach, and given the way the other reacted to it, it was coming from him.

"You haven't eaten yet, right?" Souma remarked.

"I haven't really had time for that," Takumi replied with an embarrassed look.

The redhead smiled and stepped in the kitchen.

"Go sit somewhere, I'll cook you something quick," he announced.

"I can take care of that," the blonde retorted.

"But you've cooked enough for today. Now sit down and relax."

Takumi didn't know why he didn't insist more, especially given the fact that Souma spent a lot more time cooking today than he did, since he took care of their (gigantic) lunch on top of Mikhail's _tendon_. However, he still took a seat, watching the other work his way around the place to grab a few ingredients.

"Don't make a mess," he warned out of habit.

"Don't worry about that, I'll take care of everything," the other replied with a smile.

As he rested his chin in his palm, the blonde realized that he never really took time to look at Souma cooking. They were always either in competition or working together, so his attention was occupied somewhere else every time. However, now that he was really looking at it, he found a certain beauty in the redhead's swift, precise movements. The way he peeled and chopped vegetables in front of him somehow reminded him of a show. That was entrancing.

When Souma turned his back to him to fry them, Takumi started realizing how much he loved seeing him cook. Then, the delicious smell of the dish reached him and the truth hit him, as violent and unexpected as a punch in the guts. It was simple and logical, yet he still felt like someone sent an electric shock through his body.

He loved him.

He was still staring at Souma with a bewildered expression when the other turned around to put his plate in front of him. Seeing that, the redhead gave him a surprised look.

"Is something wrong?" he asked.

Takumi snapped back to reality and shook his head in negation. That was just a silly thought anyway, he decided. He was simply tired or something. However, the moment he was going to shake it off, the taste of Souma's food kept reminding him that he was lying to himself, yet again. In a way, he fell in love with his cooking, and indirectly with him, even before their first meeting, back when Megumi started following his recipes.

It was just fried rice with vegetables, but even in this simplistic dish, Takumi could taste Souma's unique style. He loved it, there was no way to deny it. And for the past few weeks, he simply kept trying to avoid that thought. But why? At that moment, he felt so stupid he could have cried…

As he was finishing his dinner, he heard the ring of his mobile phone. It was Isami calling, wondering what they were doing that late at night and reminding them that they would miss the last train if they didn't head back home soon. Takumi reassured him and said they'd leave in a few minutes. He then walked to the sink where Souma was washing the dishes, and offered his help. The redhead was ready to refuse, but he gave in when Takumi told him that they had to hurry.

Once they were done cleaning, they both left the Trattoria.

"I guess this is where we part," Souma said.

"Yeah…" Takumi replied thoughtfully.

He paused for a moment before adding:

"I've had a wonderful day. Thank you, Souma."

"I'm glad you liked it. The Russian part wasn't planned – like most of the day actually – but all in all … I think it went pretty well."

Takumi smiled nervously. He didn't want to let him go like that but…

"I'll get going now. See you soon, Takumi."

He waived and started turning around when the blonde finally gathered enough courage to move. Then, he closed the distance between them and grabbed the redhead's neck to kiss him briefly.

When he let go of him, Souma gave him a bewildered look. He blinked a few times, and then stammered:

"What was that?"

"I … I'm sorry about that too."

Did he really have to say more? That was a bit early, wasn't it? Plus, Souma never said anything about feelings so that probably wasn't a good idea. What should he do now? He had really hoped that the other wouldn't ask for an explanation… It was something like their tenth kiss already, but the blonde felt incredibly nervous about it, like it was the first.

"So … do I take it that you won't reject me when I try to kiss you from now on?" Souma asked after a while.

Takumi let out a sigh of relief.

"No," he whispered as he leaned in for another kiss.

It tasted so much better now that he didn't try to convince himself that he didn't like it. He felt Souma smile against his lips as he wrapped his arms around him. Takumi's hands rested on his chest, and he could feel how loud the other's heart was beating. He still wasn't going to talk about feelings now, but that felt quite reassuring.

"Even in front of others?" Souma asked again when they broke the kiss.

Still in his arms, Takumi stiffened.

"That's…"

Souma chuckled and gave him a peck on the nose.

"Just kidding."

The blonde closed his eyes and shook his head slowly. Isami spent so much time trying to make him understand that he would support him no matter what… And Yuuki would feel so betrayed if they kept hiding after everything she'd done for them… Plus, he didn't want to hide forever. He was done hiding.

"That's fine," he finally replied, somehow finding it extremely hard to look up at the other.

Souma's eyes widened. He clearly didn't expect that.

"As long as it remains decent, I mean," the blonde couldn't help but add.

"Of course, who do you take me for?"

"A pervert who used cooking face-offs to get kisses?" he deadpanned.

"And you accepted," the other replied with a smile.

"Right," he sighed, averting his eyes.

"By the way, when do I start?" Souma asked after a moment of silence where both of them remembered that they were supposed to hurry, but neither wanted to leave.

"Start what?" Takumi asked with a curious frown.

"The terms of your challenge. I'm supposed to work with you from now on, right?"

"Oh, that. Well, the terms were more about you staying in Paris, so you don't have to work at the Trattoria if you don't want to. I mean, you don't even have to stay if you don't feel like it, I would understand…"

"Which is great. I'm happy to hear that you finally realized I was a sentient being with feelings and projects of my own," the redhead replied with an amused smile.

"I'm sorry about that," Takumi admitted with a sigh, wondering why he was apologizing so much tonight. "I just... I didn't know what else I could do to make you stay."

"That's fine," Souma chuckled. "It was really cute, actually."

"I expected a more manly term…" the blonde pouted.

"Cute and reckless, then."

"Says the man who spent the past few years putting his fate in the hands of complete strangers."

"See? I have a great influence on you!"

"You have a terrible influence on me," he replied, failing to repress a smile.

"Also, you know that I won't stay forever, right?" Souma suddenly asked. "In the Trattoria, I mean," he added when he saw the other's worried look. "After all, I'm really planning to open my own restaurant one day."

"And I'm looking forward to it," Takumi smiled.

"Aren't you worried that I'll know all about your techniques?"

"You wish! I'll just keep improving!"

They both grinned, thinking about this bright future full of new challenges to face together (or against each other, in this case) and new dishes to create.

"So, when do I start?" Souma asked again.

"I'll have to see that with Isami. I'll tell you as soon as I know."

"I was sort of hoping you'd say 'tomorrow' but fine."

"You could come tomorrow…" Takumi remarked. "Not to work, I mean. But…"

"Aw, so you don't want to spend a single day without me now?" Souma asked with an amused smile.

"Okay, forget it," he sighed.

"Just kidding. I'd love to come by tomorrow. Between services, like last time?"

"That would be perfect."

"Great. See you tomorrow then!" he greeted joyfully, giving him a quick peck on the lips before leaving, for good this time.

Or not, actually.

Souma was ready to turn around, but he ultimately changed his mind and stopped Takumi before he could leave, stealing another kiss – a long and proper one, this time. Just a peck on the lips was a bit too little given the situation, especially since the redhead couldn't be sure the other wouldn't start denying everything by tomorrow. He'd better enjoy the situation while it lasted!

.

Souma kept his euphoric smile as he walked to the subway station, and would have kept it all the way home if he hadn't had the strangest encounter in his life – which, given the past few years, was saying something.

As he walked in an empty street, the redhead came face to face with … himself? The shadow standing in front of him was clearly trying to impersonate him. Dark clothes, white mask, and he even had the box of food and the chopsticks. So that's what the fake Phantom looked like then?

For a moment, Souma was too shocked to react. He opened his mouth to say something, and the fake Phantom took advantage of it to put some food on his tongue.

He fell in a pit full of overcooked rice mixed with way too much soy sauce and … was it Worcestershire sauce? There were things like carrots and green peas, and something he couldn't recognize because it had been cooked and seasoned in such a terrible way that it ended up tasting like gross alien food.

There was something that bothered him, however. It wasn't like his own failed experiments. Or even his dad's. Theirs were improbable mixtures, but at least they were cooked properly. They tried to see if the combination could work, and it didn't because the ingredients simply didn't go well together. Or they were just trying to see how far they could go in the horribleness, but that was another story. This, however … it had potential. Not a great potential obviously, but it could have been edible, had the ingredients been handled properly. The person who made it clearly wanted to cook something normal, but failed every step of the way so hard that they ended up with this horror from another dimension.

By the time Souma recovered from this terrible – yet interesting – experience, the fake Phantom had already disappeared. It didn't take the redhead more than a few seconds to go back to his senses, since he was used to his own failed creations, but he lost time understanding what the problem was with the dish. He should have reacted instead of analyzing the food's level of terribleness, he scolded himself. But it was too late now, and he still made an interesting discovery.

Thinking about the irony of what just happened to him, the ex-Phantom smiled. Who would have thought that he would get attacked by a fake version of himself one day? It was quite a bad impression of the Phantom, he found, but that only made the situation funnier!

His own creations were still more disgusting though.

As he resumed his way to the subway, he licked his lips and let out a sigh of disappointment. That made him lose what was left of Takumi's taste on them. That was unforgivable. The impostor would pay for that, he swore.

However, vengeance would have to wait. For now, the most important thing was to tell everything to his father and Gin. Souma and everyone in the Trattoria had completely forgotten about it until now (or so it seemed), but they still had a serious Phantom problem on their hands!

* * *

Yay, well done Takumi, I'm so proud of you!

Really, I know I'm the author but I can't believe it took him so long. What an idiot.

Also, you might be glad to see that I didn't forget what the story was all about. I never did, it's just that I was writing from the point of view of two self-absorbed dorks... (did I mention that I love them?)

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it (and it wasn't too fluffy...). See you soon!


	18. Welcome to Reality

Hi everyone! I'm back with a fairly long chapter that was way too fun to write for its own good (or for Takumi's, for that matter...).

Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 18: Welcome to Reality**

 _Jouichirou was mad. To think that they had finally found the Phantom, and they were wrong about him being Souma... The idea made him furious. Actually, that was quite a good thing because given how pissed off he looked, their prisoner didn't dare oppose to them when they brought him to the_ Résidence _to interrogate him_.

" _Cheer up, Jouichirou. At least we'll soon be done with this case, and then we can go back to our research," Gin tried to appease him._

 _That didn't help one bit, and they both knew it._

 _They tried to make the Phantom talk, but he refused._ Good, _Jouichirou thought with a wicked smile,_ that means I'll have to use the strong method. _For once, Gin didn't argue with him and simply walked out of the room. Even after all this time, his friend still couldn't stand to see what he did to the fools who refused to cooperate._

 _The detective made him taste everything. The Phantom had to eat all of his failed experiments, and although he hadn't been in Paris for long, he still had a pretty nice collection of weird dishes already. He even created some new mixes for the occasion. The Phantom wasn't Souma, and he had to pay for that crime._

 _By the time Gin went back, their culprit couldn't speak anymore. He seemed lost in a world of terribleness, and although the detective knew that he'd done the same to innocent people for months, he still thought that the poor man didn't deserve that._

 _Averting his eyes from him, he asked Jouichirou:_

" _So? What did he tell you? Is he working for someone?"_

 _The other detective looked at him without understanding. Then, he eventually realized what he had missed until now and said:_

" _I … might have forgotten to ask him questions…"_

 _Gin sighed. Given how the Phantom looked right now, he clearly wasn't in a position to tell them anything. And they couldn't keep him for too long, since people would probably start looking for him soon. In the end, the only thing they got from him was a piece of paper from his employer. That wasn't much. But maybe if they tried following him, he would lead them to his lair? That was worth a shot. At least, now they knew for sure that the Phantom was working for someone. That meant that they still had a lot to do before they could solve the case, however…_

 _In the end, Gin felt too tired to reproach his behavior to his friend. Plus, he could understand how he felt. He put a hand on his shoulder and calmly said that he would take care of everything and leave the Phantom somewhere before he woke up._

.

"Souma! How was your date?"

Yuuki was on the redhead as soon as he stepped in the building.

"You're smiling like someone who got lucky…" Satoshi remarked with a smile.

"Well…" Souma started, making the young woman gasp. "Takumi admitted that he was acting weird these days." She squealed with excitement, and he added: "Also, we kissed."

As he said that, Yuuki improvised a victory dance around Ryoko. His grin got even wider, and he looked at her with amusement before realizing something.

"Wait… Were you guys waiting for me? Don't you have to work tomorrow or something?" he asked.

"Don't worry. We either have a day off tomorrow, or we just came back from work. Except Satoshi, but you know as well as me that he's immune to sleep," Ryoko said with a soft smile. "Also, I'm glad it went well."

"But what did you do exactly? What happened?" Yuuki asked excitedly.

"That's a long story. And you'll never guess who I met!"

By the time he started telling them about his day (minus his encounter with the fake Phantom), they were all comfortably seated in the empty living room.

"And that's why I'll work at the Trattoria from now on," he concluded.

"I'm glad to hear that. Working with you will sure be fun," Satoshi said with a warm smile.

At that moment, Souma finally noticed how silent and disturbingly still the place seemed. Now that he thought about it, the living room was _never_ empty, even at this hour… But tonight, there wasn't even someone reading or using their laptop in a corner. The redhead tried to find an explanation for that himself, but he failed to and asked the others about it.

"Well..." Ryoko said with an uncomfortable look. "You see, everyone was sort of worried about your mood when you came back."

"Yeah, most of them are hiding in their rooms in fear, right now. Just in case it went wrong, you know… But I knew everything would be fine! The picnic was a perfect plan!" Yuuki added with a smile.

They kept chatting for a while until Ryoko declared that she was going to bed. Everyone soon followed and Souma went to his room, feeling all the exhaustion from the day hitting him. But he couldn't go to bed just now, he remembered. He first had to tell his father about his encounter with the fake Phantom.

He knocked on his door and was relieved to see that he wasn't sleeping yet. Jouichirou seemed surprised to see him, but still invited him in. Gin was there as well.

"So, how was your day?" he asked as they both sat down.

"It went great. But I'll talk about it later. There's something else I wanted to tell you." He waited until he was sure he had their full attention and announced: "I met the fake Phantom on my way back."

The two men shared a look. Souma didn't know how to interpret it, however… Was it surprised? Understanding? Amused? He had no idea.

"So … how was it?" his father then asked eagerly.

"It was so weird to be in front of a bad impression of me!" Souma explained. "And the food… I don't know if you've tried it, but it doesn't taste like mine at all. It's like the person wanted to cook a normal dish and failed completely."

"That's what I thought, too."

"I can't believe you two can find a difference…" Gin sighed.

"Making terrible dishes is an art, Gin. A dark art, true, but an art all the same. It's the dark side of cooking," Jouichirou explained as Souma nodded solemnly.

Gin didn't seem convinced though…

Remembering their main topic, the redhead then turned back to his father to ask:

"So? What will you do about the fake Phantom?"

"Did you let him run away?"

"Yeah… Sorry about that," he sighed. "I was too surprised at first, and then it was too late…"

"It's okay. Actually, it's good news that he's back. I knew his employer wasn't going to give up so easily. What did he look like, by the way? Was he a small, chunky man?"

"No, he was slightly taller than me. And quite thin I'd say…"

"So there are several fakes working for the same person…" Gin concluded. "That's coherent with what we've found so far."

"It seems that everyone forgot about that Phantom thing as soon as Takumi and you came back, but we kept working on it," his father explained. "And if the person behind these fakes thinks that they can start sending their Phantoms again, that means they feel safe. It's the perfect time to plan our counterattack and find their mysterious employer."

"Do you know who it is?"

"For now, we only have a codename: Johnson. But now we're almost sure that person is a man called Cameron Smith. We'll still have to confirm it and find a way to reach him."

"What's the plan then?"

"We're not sure yet. We were working on it when you came. But we'll tell you about it soon. Until then, could you please not talk too much about your encounter? It'd be better if they think they're still safe."

"Fine. But Takumi and Isami know you're still working on the case, right?"

"That's a good question… We might have to remind them."

"I'll go to the Trattoria tomorrow, so I can talk to them about it," Souma offered.

The detectives accepted happily and the redhead left them soon after that. He had quite an eventful day and he really needed some sleep.

.

For Takumi, the lunch service seemed to last an eternity. Plus, given how Satoshi and Megumi smiled to him in the morning, it was obvious that they knew everything about what happened the day before. He didn't know how to take this information, but since he told everything to Isami as soon as he came back, it only seemed fair that the redhead did the same. Moreover, Takumi was the one who said "no more hiding". It would probably feel uncomfortable for the first few days and then it would pass, he thought to comfort himself.

He didn't start looking for Souma as soon as the last customers left. Just because he finally admitted that he liked him didn't mean he had to act like a love struck teenager. Or maybe it did? He had no idea, but he certainly wasn't going to.

Still, wasn't it weird that the redhead wasn't here yet? Maybe he should text him, just to make sure. He might still be asleep… In which case, it was probably even better to call him. He wasn't going to wake up just from a text, right?

Yeah, calling him was the best option right now, the blonde decided.

"Waiting for Souma to come already?" Isami asked behind him, making him jump in fright and almost drop his phone.

His brother had a huge, mocking grin.

"I'm sure he has forgotten," Takumi tried to defend himself.

"But he's not that late yet. Plus, it's not like it's an important occasion, is it?" Isami pointed out.

"Right," he admitted, reluctantly putting his phone aside.

But still, what if Souma had really forgotten? Not that he had planned anything special, of course, but…

Takumi sighed and resumed his waiting. Soon, he found himself counting the redheads that walked by the Trattoria. He never knew there were so many… Why did they all decide to come here just when he was looking for his own redhead? Who was a sleepyhead as well, it seemed…

As he decided to go back to the kitchen and see if there was something he could do now that it was all cleaned up and ready for the evening, he heard the sound of someone opening the door behind him.

"Hi there!"

Takumi's eyes started to sparkle, and a bright smile appeared on his face. Finally!

"Takumi, were you waiting for me?" Souma asked as he walked toward him.

"Of course not, I have too much to do to think about you all the time," he replied dryly.

Lies, lies, so many lies…

"You're late though," he eventually added with a pout. "Did you oversleep?"

"Maybe. And I didn't want to come too early, in case you were still busy."

Why didn't Souma come closer? Would it be weird if he hugged him and nuzzled at the crook of his neck right now? Probably…

He was still dying to do it, though…

Especially since there was no one else in the room at the moment…

"Did you come home safe?" he asked instead.

"About that…" the other started, making Takumi's heart jump. "You'll never guess who I met on my way back!" he continued with a huge grin.

"Godzilla?" Isami asked as he entered the room.

"Better than that! I met … my clone!"

"What seriously? Like another Phantom?" the sommelier asked.

"Exactly!"

"Wait, aren't we done with that Phantom thing?" Takumi intervened with a puzzled frown.

"No we're not," his brother replied. "I know you've completely forgotten about it since you were busy thinking about Souma all the time, but we still have a fake Phantom to catch."

"Several, apparently," Souma added before the blonde could react to his brother's taunting. "I told my dad about it and it seems that it wasn't the one they caught last time."

"But Souma … you said you've 'met' him. But he didn't attack you, right?" Takumi asked suspiciously.

"Well… I was kind of shocked so he took me by surprise…"

" _Serves you right for what you did before,"_ Takumi wanted to reply. _"Oh my God, are you okay?!"_ he also wanted to reply.

"It must be your karma," Isami said for him.

It left him with only one option, which he was thankful for.

"Are you okay?" he asked with a worried look as he put his hand on Souma's shoulder. "He didn't hurt you, right?"

"Naaah, don't worry. It was quite different from _my_ horrible dishes, but I'm still used to it."

"What do you mean 'used to it'?" Takumi asked with a frown.

"I taste them, of course. How else am I supposed to know that they're failed?"

"But isn't that the reason why you're giving them to others?"

"No, I'm doing it because it's fun. And I don't like throwing away food."

Takumi stepped back.

"You're a monster," he declared with an accusing look.

"Come on, if I'm okay with eating them, I really don't see why everyone is making such a big deal about it."

The blonde sighed. Why did he love him again?

 _The proper dishes_ , a little voice reminded him. _You like him because he can cook amazingly when he puts his mind to it._

"That's still pretty insensitive," he retorted.

"What? Do I scare you now?" the other asked with the eerie grin he always had when he was up to no good.

"You'll have to do better than that," Takumi replied, failing to repress a shiver.

 _But he wouldn't do that to him, right?_ A part of him wondered. _Not if he knows what's good for him_ , another threatened. _Does love make everyone crazy or is it just me?_ A third asked with great concern.

"By the way, do the detectives have anything new since the last time we met?" Isami intervened, putting the conversation back on the right tracks.

"Yeah, I also wanted to tell you about that. They said yesterday that they had a pretty serious lead, but they had to wait until the return of the fake Phantoms. They will tell you more about it as soon as it's confirmed. In a couple of days or so, I think."

"That's good news. I hope this whole issue is solved soon. Especially if the fake Phantoms have decided to strike again…"

"It's true that we haven't had any complaints recently," Takumi noted. "That's why I thought it was over…"

"I guess they decided to leave you alone for a while, since one of them got caught," Souma said.

They remained silent for a few seconds, until Isami announced that he was going out with Alice and Ryou.

"Apparently a new café has opened in their neighborhood, and they offered us to come for some industrial espionage."

"Don't you mean a courtesy visit?" Takumi asked.

"That's not the term Alice used. But I guess it's more or less the same."

"I didn't even know about that…"

"That's because it's quite far from the Trattoria. It's more in their restaurant's area," he explained, much to Takumi's relief. He was starting to think that he missed everything these days. "But you two can still come if you want. The offer wasn't just for me, you know."

For a second, Takumi was torn between wanting to see what this place was worth, and taking this perfect – if not forced – opportunity to spend some time alone with Souma.

"We're good," the redhead replied for him. "But thanks for the offer."

Yes, of course they were good, Takumi reminded himself. That was the correct answer. They needed some privacy to … do … whatever couples did.

Wait, were they a couple? What were they? And more importantly, if they really were a couple, what were they supposed to do?!

When his brother left them in the restaurant, he turned to Souma and asked as casually as he could:

"So, what do you want to do?"

"I don't know. Do you have something in mind?" the redhead asked in return. "Something that isn't me, I mean…" he added with a smug grin.

" _No, Souma,"_ the blonde thought, completely ignoring the last part of the reply and missing the other's face when he realized what he just said. _"No, I don't have anything in mind because I have no idea what I'm supposed to do now and I was really counting on you here!"_

"Nothing special," he said.

They remained silent. What now? It felt a bit like the previous day, except that it was even worse because this time, Takumi wasn't doing it on purpose. He really wanted to say something, but all of his ideas seemed lame and that silence had probably lasted twenty minutes already and if he didn't say anything in the next five seconds Souma would suddenly realize that he didn't care about him and walk away but seriously what was he supposed to say?

"Have you eaten already?" he blurted.

Lame. _Lame!_

Sure, they were both all about cooking, but it felt like the only things they ever did together was cooking and eating. Why did things have to be like this?

"Yes, I've grabbed something on the way."

"Good."

Well, at least they could do something different for once. But what?

"Are you nervous?" Souma asked with a smile.

"No I'm not!" he exclaimed.

Yes, he was.

"There's no reason to. I haven't changed overnight, you know," he said as he stepped closer.

He raised his hand to put it on his shoulder, but hesitated for a second and reached for the top of his head. He stopped just a few inches from it and lowered it to his cheek. There was another second of hesitation. He gave up.

Why did things have to be so complicated on the surface? Takumi wondered. He thought that everything would be simple now that he was finally being honest with himself, but it wasn't. And not just for him, apparently.

"I wish we were still underground," Souma sighed.

Takumi gave him a surprised look. Did he read his mind or something?

"What do you mean?" he asked, just to make sure.

"I don't know. It's just that … everything seemed so much easier back there. It was just the two of us – and the occasional visitors – and it never really felt awkward, I think." He paused for a second. "Well, aside from the first kisses, I mean," he finally added.

Takumi smiled softly. The idea didn't seem so bad…

"Do you want to go there?"

Souma cocked his head and gave him a questioning look.

"Underground, I mean. The secret passage is still working. And I'm quite curious about it…" Takumi explained.

"Sure! Now that I think of it, there are tons of things I'm dying to show you!" Souma exclaimed enthusiastically.

He walked toward the cellar as he said that, but suddenly stopped and asked:

"Wait, do you have a lamp or something?"

Takumi thought about it for a few seconds, and then remembered about the ones Isami and the detectives brought when they were looking for him. The two also filled a bag with a few things they might need such as water or batteries, and they soon started their exploration.

It was weird for Takumi to come back to the unused room in the cellar after so long. It hadn't even been two months since he came back, but it felt like his week underground happened years ago.

Souma easily found the way to open the secret passage and stood aside the entrance, inviting him with dramatically exaggerate moves.

" _Take that Yuuki!"_ the redhead thought as he turned on the lamp and followed the other in the dark.

She had given him such a long lecture in the morning about what they were supposed to do as a couple, and now here he was, following none of her advices and loving every second of it. Her briefing confused him so much that he had no idea what to say or what to do when he was finally in front of Takumi. Every time he started to have an idea, he could hear a tiny Yuuki on his shoulder yelling at him: _"Don't do that! That's not a couple thing! Don't you want to be his boyfriend or what?"_

However, now that he was taking a stroll underground with the other, he felt like he was finally back in his element. Takumi really had a great idea. He turned to him to see how he was doing and suddenly realized that something was wrong.

Takumi wasn't walking beside him anymore.

He turned around and scanned the area with his flashlight, but he couldn't find him. He cursed and went back on his steps, Isami's voice resonating in his head. _"If you're going somewhere with my brother, never let him out of your sight. It only takes a second of inattention to lose him,"_ he said. Souma didn't take him seriously back then but as always, the other was right. Growing up as Takumi's little brother must have been so hard, the redhead realized, feeling a wave of sympathy toward him.

He called the blonde's name and let out a sigh of relief when he got an answer. He wouldn't get killed by an angry sommelier tonight. He soon found Takumi at a crossroad and slightly lowered the lamp to light his path toward him. The other went to him with a grateful smile, but as he was getting closer, Souma thought about something better.

When Takumi was just a few steps away from him, the redhead turned off the lamp. The blonde let out a surprised yelp and froze. What was Souma doing?!

He felt movement beside him but when he lifted his hand, he only grabbed air.

"Souma, this isn't funny!" he exclaimed.

Two arms wrapped around him and he felt a hot breath on his neck.

"There you are," Souma whispered in his ear, bringing him closer in his embrace.

Takumi relaxed, and slowly started to feel his cheeks burning. He thanked the gods that he was in the dark right now.

"Your ears are so warm," the other chuckled. "I'm sure you're bright red right now."

Forget the gods, he was cursed.

He felt Souma's slightly cold nose rub against his ear shell and … wait, was he nibbling it? He felt a long shiver of pleasure at the feeling and wondered where it came from. That made his face burn even harder, which he never thought would be possible. The other didn't stop there, sending other dull waves of pleasure through his body.

"Souma," he started, unable to decide if he wanted to ask him what he was doing or just taste the sound of his name on his tongue.

"So that's a sensitive spot. Interesting," the redhead remarked.

"Don't talk like you're a specialist."

He chuckled.

"You're right, I'm not," he admitted with a smile, making Takumi wonder how a smile could be so _loud._

He then put a kiss on his cheek, which allowed the blonde to locate his lips and turn his head to kiss him on the mouth…

…and fail miserably.

Souma was too quick for him and before Takumi could grab his neck, he stepped back, releasing him from his embrace. Without that source of heat on his back, the blonde almost felt cold…

The redhead then turned on the flashlight without warning, and he quickly covered his eyes at the sudden source of light, cursing under his breath. Souma apologized (although his chuckle made it hard to take it seriously) and Takumi felt glad that the other thought his outburst was caused only by the lamp. The redhead probably didn't notice his failed kissing attempt. At least he wouldn't make fun of him for it. Takumi felt ashamed enough like that…

"Are you ready?" he heard Souma ask when he finally managed to open his eyes.

"Sure," the blonde replied, still trying to regain his composure.

As they started walking, he felt Souma's warm hand grabbing his.

"I have to make sure you don't vanish again," he explained.

Takumi didn't reply and they kept walking hand in hand silently, enjoying each other's presence. That made the blonde feel better about his missed opportunity. There would be others anyway, he reminded himself.

Souma showed him a few interesting rooms, telling him stories he heard from other underground explorers. They apparently formed a nice community and they were always eager to share their discoveries. Takumi listened to him with a soft smile, happy to learn more about this side of him. That was probably not what couples (or whatever they were) did, but he loved it all the same.

His phone's alarm rang way too early for his liking, and he sighed before telling Souma that they should head back to the Trattoria so that he could prepare for the evening. They didn't let go of each other's hands while they walked back, talking about various things. The blonde loved that feeling. Especially the way Souma moved both their arms so naturally when he got excited about something – thought to be honest, Takumi was doing it as well. As they went back to their old debate about whether a cooked Bulbasaur should be considered meat or vegetable, he wondered how long it would take them to be as comfortable with each other on the surface. Which was strange because they were inherently the same persons underground and above… Why couldn't they act like that all the time?

"Here we are," Souma suddenly announced. "We just have to walk a few meters, cross the wall, and we're back. Do you still have some time?"

Takumi checked his clock and told him that they still had a few minutes.

"Perfect," he whispered as he cupped his cheek to kiss him.

For Takumi, that move was as unexpected as it was welcome. It completely washed away his regrets from earlier. He wrapped his arms around Souma's neck as he deepened the kiss, letting out a sigh of content. The other's hands went playfully under his shirt, still remaining on his hips, and he soon left his lips to start kissing his neck. The blonde's hands got lost in his hair as he tilted his head to give him more room. He soon felt teeth against his skin and complained:

"Don't leave marks. I have to work after that."

"Yes sir," Souma replied with a smile, going back to his lips.

Leaving him for his kitchen felt like torture.

Isami went back soon after Souma left. Apparently, the new place was pretty nice and they all had a great time, especially since Alice was so serious about the industrial espionage part and acted like an undercover secret agent the whole time.

"By the way, your hair is messy," he suddenly remarked with an amused smile. "What did you two do while I wasn't here?"

"Nothing special," Takumi blurted as he tried to flatten it.

"Yeah, sure," his brother replied, ruffling it again as the blonde protested.

.

The Aldinis didn't hear about the detectives for the next two days. When they called them and asked for a meeting however, the two men had a lot to tell them. The four of them met once again in the restaurant's office, and Doujima soon started to expose what they had found.

They now had the confirmation of Johnson's identity, but they also found out that he was working under someone's orders himself. What they needed now was to find a way to catch him and reveal who his employer was.

"Do you already have a plan?" Isami asked.

The detectives exchanged a long, meaningful look.

"We might have something…" Yukihira started.

Doujima nodded.

"Nothing dangerous, I hope?"

"No, don't worry about that. It might just take some time, since it involves finding another fake Phantom and using them to get to their boss."

"Do as you wish. I'm actually glad that you'll be out there. We're just recovering from these incidents and it would be bad for us if people started being attacked again."

They settled a few details and the two men left, apparently discussing their plan. It sounded a bit strange however, since Isami was sure he heard Doujima say something about shaving and getting the uniform ready. He had no idea what they had in mind, but he was quite curious to see it.

As for Takumi, he remained strangely silent the whole time, and his brother knew that he barely listened to anyone during the meeting. It wasn't obvious at first, but the blonde was quite easy to read once you knew him, and Isami had more than twenty years of experience in that. And here, the other was clearly spacing out.

"So, what do you think about their plan?" he asked after the detectives left, just for the pleasure of seeing his brother's disoriented look.

As always, it worked perfectly.

"Sorry, you were saying?" the blonde asked, snapping back to reality.

"Don't tell me you've spent the whole meeting thinking about Souma," he said with an amused smile, knowing the answer already.

His brother muttered something along the lines of "Of course not!", but his blushing cheeks told him otherwise. Just for these moments, Isami was glad Souma came in their lives. Takumi's current behavior was hilarious and that multiplied his teasing material by at least ten. To think that just a few months ago, the sommelier still believed that his life couldn't be better… He was so wrong about that.

"When does he start again?" he asked.

"Next week," his brother replied immediately. "We've discussed it with Norah and him, and it seemed best for everyone."

"That's great. I'm sure the Trattoria will be quite lively with him around. Even more than now, that is."

"Yeah," Takumi replied with a dreamy look, already leaving him for another world that was probably full of Souma and food.

Well, not under his watch!

"I hope you two will be able to focus though…" he remarked innocently.

"Of course we will! We're professionals!" Takumi replied with an offended frown.

"Sure, if you say so…" Isami said with a falsely unconvinced tone.

Takumi took the bait and his brother kept taunting him about it, trying his best to repress his laugh. A whole new world of teasing had just opened to him. That was too much power for one person… However, he was determined not to let it go to waste while it lasted!

* * *

I hope you liked it. As always, don't hesitate to tell me what you think.

FYI, I'll go back to the normal publication rhythm from now on. I just happened to have lots of free time during the holidays, but it's over now...

See you!


	19. The Dark Side of the Cooks

Hi everyone! I'm back with a new chapter, and I'll focus on the fake Phantoms for real this time!

Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 19: The Dark Side of the Cooks**

It was a dark night. The Trattoria was closed already and the streets around it were incredibly still. Suspiciously still, some would say. Then, the sound of footsteps broke the silence. A silhouette slowly emerged from the shadows. It was walking in a strange way, making extra noise, like it wanted to be noticed. Soon, it started talking:

"Ooooh, alas! I am but a poor woman, so weak and defenseless, walking alone in a dark alley!" Inui declaimed dramatically. "As a regular client of the Trattoria, I sure hope that I will not get attacked by a mysterious being lurking in the shadows. I am not sure if I will survive having to eat gross food. If it were to happen, I will not come back to that restaurant ever again and I will make sure to tell all of my friends to avoid it!"

Gin sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. Of all the people they could have asked to act as the bait, why did they have to choose _Inui_? Sure, that choice was the result of extremely serious researches on the fake Phantom's past victims, where they tried to find what kind of person was the most likely to be attacked. And yes, as a frail looking woman _and_ a regular customer that had never been attacked before, Inui was the ideal candidate. But while they were so focused on finding the perfect profile for a potential victim, they forgot a very important factor: they didn't take the person's personality into account.

The worst part was that Inui seemed like a pretty decent actress when she put her mind into it. However, at the moment, she had clearly decided not to take her mission seriously. Maybe they should have accepted her condition and let Megumi work in her restaurant? She sure would have been way more serious about it if they had…

As he was following her from a distance, Gin wished for the tenth time already that the fake Phantom would be a complete idiot and fall in their trap soon. It was starting to get cold outside and he could feel a chilly wind blowing on his exposed legs.

Suddenly, the detective saw something move in the nearby street, and Inui looked like she noticed as well. Startled, she stopped and asked if there was someone. Her tone was way more natural this time, but despite her obvious surprise, she didn't sound anxious. A dark silhouette with a white mask emerged silently from the street. _So that fake Phantom_ is _a complete moron after all,_ he smiled. _Perfect_.

As the man – he supposed – approached his bait, Gin rushed to him. There was no fight. Being so much taller and stronger than his opponent, the detective tackled him and soon brought him under control. _Part one, check,_ he thought with a sigh of relief.

Inui's hearty laugh rang in his hears, making him look up.

"Seriously Mr. Doujima, I can't believe you did all this while wearing a miniskirt," she managed to sputter between two fits of laughter. "Where did you even find a schoolgirl uniform your size?"

He didn't bother to give her a reply, knowing that she wouldn't listen to it anyway.

The woman eventually managed to calm down, and asked in a more serious tone:

"Why are you wearing that again?"

She still had a tiny smile on, and Gin knew that she wouldn't be able to repress her laughter for long.

"It's important for the next step of our plan," he replied simply.

Jouichirou wouldn't even bother to give a reply, he thought with an amused smile. _"Details, details…"_ he always said, waving his hand as if the questions were nothing but annoying flies.

"Anyway, your work here is done," the detective announced. "You can go home now. Thank you for your help."

"And as agreed, my sweet little Megumi will work for me from now on, right?" she asked with a bright smile.

"No one has agreed on that," he retorted. "If you want her to work at your restaurant, you'll have to see that with her directly."

"You're no fun," she sighed. "I thought you'd change your mind after my amazing performance!"

"That's not for us to decide," Jouichirou intervened as he joined them. "Plus, that was a terrible performance. I can't believe that guy fell for that."

"But she said she was defenseless," the fake Phantom weakly opposed. "How was I supposed to know she had a bodyguard?"

 _So he really is a complete idiot,_ the long haired detective thought. _Perfect._ He squatted down to their catch of the day's level and announced:

"So, I'll give you two choices. Either you call your boss and tell him exactly what I ask you to, or you eat whatever is in your box. If that's not enough, I have a few of my own creations in my bag."

The man started shaking at the threat.

"Please," he begged in a truly terrified voice. "Don't make me eat that. I'll do whatever you want but _don't make me eat that thing!_ I regret what I've done. I won't do it ever again I swear!"

That was so efficient it almost made the detective jealous. He was quite sure that his own gross dishes were worst, however. Maybe he should make the other taste them, just to compare…

But not now, he reminded himself. He had more important things to do at the moment.

"Do you have your employer's phone number?" he asked.

"Yes. My phone is in my left pocket," the fake Phantom sniffled.

It was actually in the right one, but at least he tried. Jouichirou took it out and soon found the person he wanted.

"Now listen and listen well. You're going to call him and tell him that your victim had an allergic reaction and you don't know what to do," he instructed.

"Shouldn't I call an ambulance instead?"

"Come on, you're supposed to be an idiot! Try to stay in character. You're panicking!"

"Hey, don't call me an idiot!" the man protested. "It's not my fault your plan is stupid!"

"It will work," the detective affirmed. "Gin is wearing the lucky costume. So everything will be fine as long as you do as I say."

"I still think it's stupid," the fake Phantom muttered.

"Do you want a foretaste of what awaits you if you don't shut up and obey?" Jouichirou threatened, offended that such a moron could find flaws in his perfect plan.

"No sir!" the man yelped.

"That's what I thought," he nodded, composing the number and putting the speaker on. "Now remember: she's on the ground, she's not moving, and you're panicking."

Johnson replied almost immediately, and he didn't seem happy to be bothered.

"What is it, Karim? I hope you've found a victim. You know what will happen if you don't…"

"Yes, sir. But she fell on the ground when I gave the food to her and I … I think she was allergic to something. She's not moving, I don't know what to do!"

"Call an ambulance, you moron!"

The fake Phantom gave them a triumphant _"Told you so!"_ look, but Jouichirou knew what to do.

"Tell him she's not breathing and you can't be there when they come," he whispered.

"Just leave before they arrive, they won't look for you. What do you want me to do anyway?" Johnson snapped when Karim delivered his line.

It took them at least fifteen minutes of intensive bargaining to finally make him come, but it still worked. All thanks to Jouichirou's awesome smooth talk.

"See?" the detective said with a victorious smile as he snatched the phone from the fake Phantom's hands. "Everything worked according to plan."

The man seemed ready to retort something, but he gave up halfway.

"Now we're going to leave you somewhere until we get what we need, and you'll be free to go afterward. It won't be long," Gin explained calmly as he put him on his feet and led him somewhere else.

Johnson arrived sooner than they expected, but they were still ready. The way he walked made his irritation quite clear, and he clicked his tongue with annoyance when he saw nothing but Gin hidden under the fake Phantom's coat, leaving only his perfectly shaved legs exposed.

"Where is that idiot?" he muttered under his breath, stepping closer to the body.

When he was close enough, Gin grabbed him and pinned him to the ground in one swift movement. The man seemed too shocked to even say something. As always, the miniskirt did most of the job.

It worked every time.

.

"Souma, I said no," Takumi declared with crossed arms, standing firmly in front of his kitchen's doors.

"But Takumi, don't you understand how important it is? We're doing that for the Trattoria!"

"I refuse!"

"Come on _Nii-chan_ , don't be so stubborn."

"Don't _nii-chan_ me Isami, I won't let that happen! What if I can't get rid of the stench?"

Souma sighed. He should have known that the blonde would never let them use his kitchen to cook the materials for Johnson's interview. Takumi was such a bore sometimes…

His father and he had tried everything to get information from the man, but he seemed insensitive to gross food. Worse, he even said that he _liked_ some of their worst creations! The only thing they managed to learn from him was that he was behind the fake Phantom's dishes. Apparently, these were leftovers from his dinners… He didn't understand why people hated his food so much, but he kept providing the fake Phantoms with it because it seemed effective. What were they supposed to do against such a strong opponent?

They had to find new dishes. They had to surpass themselves and reach a new level of disgustingness. And for that, they needed a kitchen.

Souma sighed. He didn't want to use that technique, but it seemed that he had no other choice. In order to convince the chef, he was ready for anything.

He put on his most charming smile and walked closer to Takumi, who took a step back as he approached.

"What are you doing?" he asked with a suspicious frown.

"Come on, honey, won't you do that for me?"

Takumi sighed.

"Stop it now, you're ridiculous. And you look like Flynn Rider…" he commented with an amused smile.

"Like who?"

"Never mind. That's still a no," he replied as he gently pushed the redhead out of his personal space.

"Please?" Souma tried again with an adorable pout.

"That's cuter, I admit it. But let me rephrase it."

The blonde stepped toward him and put his face so close that their noses brushed, making Souma's heart skip a beat.

"No," he whispered before stepping back, dodging the redhead's incoming lips.

Souma grumbled in discontent, already planning his next move. However, their salvation came from Isami.

"Why don't we use your kitchen instead, Souma? The one you had underground is still working, right?"

He turned to the sommelier with a bright smile.

"That's an excellent idea! It's pretty close and I still have a few ingredients from the last time I went there with Takumi!"

He received a punch on the shoulder and turned back to a blushing, angry Takumi.

"So that's where the two of you have been disappearing for the past few days!" Isami said with a bright smile.

"What, weren't they supposed to know?" the redhead asked his boyfriend with a confused look.

"It's fine," he sighed. "I'm good as long as you're not using my kitchen for your … activities."

"Perfect then! But still, can we borrow a few ingredients from here?"

"Whatever you feel like," the chef accepted with a resigned shrug.

.

By the time they all moved to the underground kitchen, Souma's competitive spirit was sky high. He was going to beat his father this time! His dish would make Johnson talk! Jouichirou seemed to be in the same mood, and they soon started the most twisted cooking face-off they ever had. Whose dish would be the worst? They would soon find out!

From a small distance, Gin, Takumi, and Isami looked at them with a horrified, yet intrigued expression. They didn't want to watch this but somehow, they were hypnotized by the professionalism and the passion these two put in ruining perfectly good ingredients…

Souma finished first, and he was quite satisfied with his grilled dried herring. He had added some more salt and covered it with a sauce made from lemon juice, strawberries and anchovies.

Johnson found it quite interesting and suggested adding soy sauce.

As for his father, he came up with a brown mess: squid cooked in coffee and grapefruit juice.

It didn't work either.

Father and son soon decided to go into more complicated things. It wasn't long until they started putting some twists in their creations.

"You did great, Souma," Jouichirou announced solemnly as he tried his son's dish. "This thing isn't only overly sweet. There is also a strong bitter aftertaste."

"That's right, Dad! I added some chicory coffee to the mix!" Souma explained with a proud grin.

"That's good, but you won't win against me! Behold, my fish fingers with honey and pickled plums!"

"But … this isn't just any fish fingers," the redhead remarked with an impressed look. "Where does that stench come from?"

"I added some old grated cheese and bonito stock powder to the batter!"

"I think it would be better with custard though…" Johnson commented.

Soon, Isami started playing along, offering ideas of his own.

"Don't encourage them Isami!" his brother yelled.

But it was too late already. The sommelier was lost in his morbid fascination.

"Why not add some cocoa powder?" he suggested as Souma was looking for something to use in his sauce.

"Good idea!" he exclaimed. "You have a great potential, Isami," he added with a smile.

"Thank you. I'm glad to be of help!"

"How could you…" Takumi hissed, not knowing himself if he was talking about his brother's betrayal or Souma's role in his downfall.

Yet, when he saw the redhead take out tomato sauce to cook his bananas in for his next attempt, he couldn't help but say:

"You should try to cover them with mustard and fry them quickly beforehand."

He swiftly covered his mouth as soon as he realized what he just said, but it was too late already. He was one of _them_ now. There was no way to salvation for him…

"Nice!" the other grinned. "I'll try it! Thanks Takumi!"

"Don't thank me!" the blonde yelled angrily. "Can't you see what I've become because of you?"

"I'll let you taste it once it's done," Souma announced without listening. "Your first creation … that's so moving!"

"Shut up! There's no way I'm eating that thing!"

"It doesn't count if you need help, Souma," his father taunted.

"You're only saying that because you're jealous Gin isn't supporting you," the redhead replied with a smirk.

Once he was done with his mustard bananas in sweet tomato sauce, he grabbed one and offered it to Takumi.

"Here you are."

"There's no way I'm putting that in my mouth."

"Come on, you have to try it! It's half the fun!"

"Souma, don't put that thing anywhere near me, I'm serious."

"Try iiiiiiiiit!"

He resisted as well as he could, but Souma had too much experience in this and managed to outwit him. The taste of the food wasn't as bad as the taste of his boyfriend's betrayal. How could he do that to him? It felt like he just rubbed his whole body with a banana covered with stitching powder, and the blonde was sure that vague lemon rind taste didn't come from the dish itself. The mustard and the banana tasted horrible together, and the sauce had a disgusting jelly texture. Plus, how did he manage to make it so sour and overly sweet at the same time?

As he wondered about that, Takumi had an illumination. He slowly opened his eyes, gazing in the distance. Everything was clear now.

"We should add some raw garlic," he whispered.

That was it. Takumi was above good and evil now. He had just stepped on all of his principles. He was defeated.

He looked up at Souma, who was chewing on his banana thoughtfully.

"Yes, that's the thing!" he then exclaimed excitedly. "That's exactly what we need to perfect it! Takumi, you're the best!"

That was a lie. He was the worst. The worst chef ever. He didn't even deserve that title anymore… After all, his main goal in life was to make food delicious, not … that.

When even this dish didn't work, Souma and his father both came to the conclusion that they couldn't do it alone. In order to make Johnson speak, they had to join forces and work together to create the worst dish in the world!

They shook hands gravely to seal their alliance and soon started discussing the content of their joint creation. Isami joined in joyfully as his brother looked at him go with a defeated expression. He couldn't stop him anymore, for he had sinned too…

With a resigned sigh, he joined the group as well. They were doing it for the Trattoria after all. And he had to help as much as he could. If he worked with them now, maybe they would get the information they wanted. And then, they could end this madness.

After a while, even Doujima offered his help. This was the gross dish to end all gross dishes. The ultimate gross dish.

Their final idea required several steps and a careful preparation. The ingredients were cut just the right size and shape to be cooked poorly. They were boiled, fried, marinated, and even flambéed all separately, and covered in awful mixtures they called sauces. They made them absorb all the stench and all the disgustingness they could, in order to create a different explosion of awfulness at each bite.

Once it was done, the five of them observed the result, their eyes filled with fear and awe. No one offered to taste it. Just trying the different parts separately was gross enough already. They didn't even dare to imagine how horrible it would be now that they were all combined. Only one man on Earth could taste it and survive this experience, and it was Johnson.

Actually, they weren't even sure that he would survive it. But technically it wasn't poisonous, so there was no reason to worry, they thought to reassure themselves.

"Okay Johnson. Time to say 'aaah'," Jouichirou said as he offered him some of their horrible mixture.

Their prisoner tasted it with a bored expression.

That changed the moment he closed his mouth.

This dish felt like falling into a bottomless pit of horror. There was goo everywhere and lots of disturbing, dirty items all around him. Broken porcelain dolls staring at him through half closed eyes. Monstrous cuckoo clocks with bizarre and frightful shapes, covered with sleek black feathers. Stuffed monsters with slimy tentacles, secreting dark oil from their too many eyes. The ingredients had been cooked in such an awful way that Johnson couldn't recognize any of it. Was he chewing carrots, onions or meat? He didn't know. He was just falling, for ever and ever, like a junkie Alice down a twisted rabbit hole.

When he managed to recover from this terrible experience, there was nothing left of him.

"I'll tell you everything," he said in a dull voice. "But please, don't make me eat that thing again."

The ultimate gross dish had won.

That was the true power of the dark side of cooking.

 _I'm never doing that again,_ Takumi promised himself with a shiver of fright.

* * *

Again, I had lots of fun writing and editing this. My characters are such idiots, and Takumi is a total drama queen. What's not to love?


	20. The Truth

Wow, I can't believe I'm just 3 chapters from the end of this story...  
Anyway, this chapter is a bit less entertaining but I still hope you enjoy it!

* * *

 **Chapter 20: The Truth**

Once they gathered all the information they wanted, the small group decided to head back to the Trattoria, escorting a shaken and visibly traumatized Johnson through the underground galleries. Takumi was walking silently beside Souma, barely noticing his hand in his. He had grabbed it out of habit, since the redhead refused to let him go underground otherwise in case he got lost, but the spirit wasn't there.

He felt like a war criminal.

"I can't believe it was Eizan all along!" Isami exclaimed with an indignant hand move. "To think that we suspected him right from the start, and it was actually _him_!"

"You didn't suspect him seriously, if I remember well," Gin remarked.

"Sure, but still! And the reason! I mean, I knew that he really wanted the place, but I can't believe he actually _hired people_ to put us in trouble like that!"

"What is this Eizan guy like?" Souma asked.

"He's a businessman. He owns lots of famous restaurants and he's had his eyes on the Trattoria for a few years now," the sommelier explained.

"That explains his last visit, before Nakiri came," Takumi pointed out absentmindedly, lost in a world of desolation and disgusting food that he contributed to create.

"No but I mean, physically. What does he look like?" Souma insisted.

"Dirty blonde hair, usually swept-back. Glasses. Always looks pissed off or uninterested. He has a thing for flashy jewelry and leopard prints," Isami summarized.

"Oh him! Yeah, I think I forced him to eat one of my gross dishes once," Souma declared casually.

"You did _what?!_ " Takumi exploded as he abruptly came back from his nightmarish inner world.

"I didn't like him," the redhead shrugged. "I can't really explain why though. Probably the yankee look… Anyway, I felt like he would be a perfect victim."

"How long ago was it?" Detective Yukihira asked.

"Can't remember. Why? Do you think that gave him the idea?"

"It might be the case…"

Doujima sighed as he reminded them how they ruled him out of their list of suspects so early in their investigation, since he was one of the victims. They should have updated that list as soon as they found out that there was more than one Phantom…

"By the way … what do we do now?" Isami asked suddenly.

"That's a good question. Sure, knowing who is behind the fake Phantoms is a huge step forward, but we still have to find a way to make him stop," Doujima replied.

"Can't we think about it tomorrow?" the other detective intervened. "It's been a long night and I'm getting tired. Plus, we can be certain that we won't have any attacks for a while now, so we have time to find a plan."

"I guess you're right. We should all go to sleep now."

At this point, they had reached the Trattoria. They released Johnson, threatening him with the ultimate gross dish to make him promise anything they wanted, and decided to go back home soon after that.

As Takumi started following his brother, Souma grabbed his arm to stop him. The blonde turned around to see what the other wanted but didn't have time to open his mouth as a pair of lips crashed on his.

He enjoyed the contact for approximately two seconds. Then, he abruptly pushed the redhead back.

"Eww, I can taste all the horrible dishes you've cooked all night! That's disgusting! Don't kiss me until you've thoroughly brushed you teeth!" he exclaimed, making everyone turn around with various degrees of startled expressions.

"Yeah, you're right. That doesn't taste great, even on you," Souma admitted.

"Don't remind me of what I've just done…"

"Come on, you did so great! I never thought you had this in you but really, the garlic part? That was genius!"

"Evil genius."

"Exactly. I'm so proud of you…"

"I'm never doing this again, Souma. Never."

"Right, it suits you better," the redhead admitted. "Anyway, see you tomorrow?"

"Given how late it is, I think I'll use my free time to get some sleep…"

"I understand. See you later then. Good night!"

They waived at each other and went their separate ways.

.

After such an eventful evening, sleeping was hard for everyone. Takumi still managed to work flawlessly the day after, but that required way more focus than usual and he almost failed a few dishes, which was unheard of coming from him. He spent the whole pause between services sleeping, and so did his brother.

They met the detectives on the following day to discuss their next step, but none of them seemed to have any idea. Souma remained unusually silent and looked lost in his own thoughts while the others shared everything they knew about Eizan. Takumi told them about the old researches he did back when he had to deal with Mimasaka, and the detectives gave them all the information they gathered the day before.

"The real issue is that we can't face the problem directly. We don't have enough proof to go to justice, and even if we did, I don't think we can compete with his army of lawyers," Gin explained.

"We've also learned that he doesn't like being outwitted, so we can't stop him like that without risks of retaliation," Jouichirou added. "We should probably do more researches to find a weak point, but that could take a while…"

"I don't really care about the means and the time it will take, as long as the Trattoria is safe," Takumi declared, seconded by Isami.

In the end, they didn't manage to agree on anything concrete and they all felt very disappointed when they split. They had gone such a long way since the beginning of their investigation, and the idea of stopping now was extremely frustrating. They were so close, but none of them could find a proper way to solve this case once and for all.

And if it wasn't enough already, Arato called later that day to make a reservation for dinner in three weeks. Of course, they had to solve their Phantom problem before that. They couldn't afford to have Nakiri attacked a second time, even if she didn't have to eat anything gross. Sure, the food probably wouldn't be as bad, since Johnson promised never to share his leftovers with anyone from now on, but Eizan would probably find a new gross food supplier soon, as well as someone to coordinate the fake Phantom attacks. They had to act before he could do that. However, despite their best efforts, they couldn't find anything to stop him.

As Takumi shared his worries with Isami, Souma stepped in and asked:

"You were serious when you said you were willing to do anything as long as you can save your restaurant, right?"

They stopped their conversation mid-sentence and gave him a questioning look. The redhead seemed unusually serious as he said that.

"Well… it's not like we're ready to kill him for that or anything," Isami declared. "But if you have an idea, it is more than welcome."

Souma remained silent.

"Are you okay?" the blonde asked, worried by this strange behavior. "You've been really silent today. Is there something on your mind?"

The redhead gave him his brightest grin and declared that it was nothing special. A part of Takumi wanted to tell him that he didn't believe him. Another was completely blinded by the light emanating from Souma's smile and couldn't think about anything else. It won, and the blonde didn't ask any question. Neither did Isami, although he didn't have the blinded-by-smile excuse.

.

"Souma, it's so good to see you here!" Mikhail exclaimed with a pleased smile. "Have you decided to work for me after all?"

"Not really," the redhead replied with the same serious look he had earlier. "I actually came to ask for your help."

As he explained the situation to his old employer, Souma wondered how Takumi would react if he knew about his plan. He would probably disapprove of it. However, that was the best option for everyone, he was sure of it.

"So you want us to get rid of Etsuya Eizan? That's quite a big favor you're asking from us…"

"I know. Also, if you could find a way to stop him that wouldn't imply killing anyone, that would be great."

Mikhail's laugh boomed around the room.

"Do you have a plan for that, or should we find something ourselves?"

"Well, I don't know how you usually get things done, so… I thought about using intimidation, just so that he'd stop targeting the Trattoria, you know…"

"Sure, that's something we could do. But I'm only here a few weeks a year and we can't really keep an eye on him while we're away."

"Yeah, I guess I should have thought about it earlier," Souma sighed.

"I didn't say it was impossible, though. I'm sure we can think of something. But before that … you know that you can't get what you want for free, right?"

Souma was ready for that part. He knew he probably wouldn't like the other's condition, but he was prepared to hear it.

"I'm not entirely ready to let you go, you know…"

And here it was.

Would it be worth it though? The redhead wondered. Which would be better? Leaving Takumi, knowing the place he cherished the most was safe? Or staying with him even if that meant seeing the Trattoria close down a few weeks later? What would happen to all the people who worked there?

He pursed his lips as he considered both options. Then, he decided that he should at least try bargaining a bit.

"You know I can't do that. We've had a whole competition organized around it, remember?"

"Sure, but that doesn't mean you belong to him. Ultimately, you're free to decline his offer and take mine."

"Right… But the people at the Trattoria are counting on me. I might have just started but still, I can't let them down now."

"Then I'm not sure I can help you…"

Well, at least he tried…

Just as he was ready to accept the deal, Sergei approached Mikhail and whispered something in his ear. He saw the other smile widely as he thanked his right hand man. Then, he turned back to Souma with a pleased look.

"If you'd rather stay in France, Serioga here has just found a nice compromise."

Souma's heart jumped. He was ready for anything!

"We're still here for a week. And I know your friend is a great chef already. So how about a reservation for the whole week in his restaurant? For me and my men."

"So you mean you'd fill the restaurant for a week?"

"Exactly. If we make sure Eizan hears a rumor about us having bought the place for when we come to Paris, that could also work as a great mean of dissuasion. He might be okay with intimidating two isolated civilians, but I don't think he'd want to mess with us. And I assume he's clever enough to guess that I'd be _very_ displeased if my possession were to close down while I'm away…"

"That sounds … reasonable," Souma replied, overjoyed by the fact that he wouldn't have to leave after all.

Then, something hit him and he said:

"However … that's not something I can decide on my own."

"Of course not. We'll have to speak to the owners for that. Plus, I still have a few extra conditions…"

Takumi was going to kill him. Probably. But hey, at least they had a legal solution for their Eizan problem now! So maybe he would just half kill him?

.

"And how did you say you knew these people?" Isami asked in a suspicious tone.

Takumi sighed. Of course, he never intended to hide his encounter with the Russian mafia forever. However, he never thought he'd have to tell his brother about it after a call from Sergei, who said his boss had an offer to make them.

How ironic, he thought, that despite being half-Italian and half-Japanese, they wouldn't get involved with the underworld of either of these countries, and end up _Russians_ instead. But now that Souma was with them, it was probably something they should get used to. The redhead always seemed to attract the most unexpected kind of people…

"Remember when I went out with Souma, after our last duel? We met Sergei, the one who called, back then," he explained. "He recognized Souma, and we somehow ended up at his boss' place. Then, said boss tried to make him work for him again, and I … might have ended up in a cooking battle against his best chef to make Souma stay."

Isami face palmed.

"Seriously, why do I even let you go out without me?" he asked.

"Hey, everything ended up just fine!" Takumi retorted, taking a mental note of how much he sounded like his boyfriend right now.

"Anyway, if he has an idea to help us get rid of Eizan, that's great. Right?" Norah asked.

The three of them were currently inside a car sent by Mikhail, on their way to his place. They still had a few hours until the evening service, and they were quite curious to hear what the Russian would have to offer.

Of course, the Aldinis refused to have Norah come with them at first. However, she insisted on following them, pointing out that she was in charge of most of the organization stuff, and she was the best at negotiating anyways. Given how she managed to convince them, it was hard for them to argue on that point…

.

When Takumi saw Souma with the Russians upon his arrival, he was ready to scold him right there and then. However, he felt that it would be a bad idea and simply gave him a threatening look. That would be for later…

To be honest, Mikhail's offer did sound quite interesting. Technically, there was nothing illegal and the Trattoria would still be theirs in the end. Isami countered that Eizan wouldn't be fooled forever, but the Russian replied that rumors came and went, but the message would still be the same: this place was under protection.

"I have a few more conditions, however," Mikhail added. "First of all, I don't think I'd want to eat Italian food for the whole week. But I guess that wouldn't be too hard for you to cook in another style if requested to, right?"

"I can do that as long as I have the proper ingredients. And the proper kitchenware, of course," Takumi replied.

"Great, so I guess you can go for a personalized menu then."

"Wait," Norah intervened, now in full businesswoman mode. "If you decide to eat Asian food for instance, we'll have to find ingredients we don't usually buy. And we might even need new kitchenware that we won't use ever again. Who's going to pay for that?"

A long discussion and heated debate started between the two of them, and at that moment, Takumi felt extremely relieved to have their service manager with them. Bargaining was one of her greatest strengths, especially since she sometimes had to do it with their suppliers, and she was able quickly estimate how much Mikhail's conditions would cost. Of course, she probably would have given up on that if the other had decided not to accept any compromise – she was brave, but not crazy. However, the situation seemed to amuse him. And deep down, the blonde knew that she was having fun as well.

When they finally managed to find a satisfying agreement for both parties, the Russian added one last thing:

"Also, you remember my new head chef, right?" he asked.

"Sure," Takumi replied.

"He's going to work with you."

The chef frowned. Why would he do that? Was Mikhail planning to make him take orders in his own kitchen? Or did he have something different in mind?

"He could be of help if you have trouble finding some ingredients. But more importantly, I'm pretty sure he can learn a thing or two from Souma and you."

The blonde's frown turned into a proud smile as he heard that. That sounded right.

Norah and the Russian still discussed a few things, such as the reservations they already had for the coming week, until everything was settled. The two of them seemed pretty satisfied with the situation, and from what they understood from their heated discussion, so were Isami and he.

The following week promised to be interesting…

* * *

So... Yeah, it's clearly a transition chapter. It has been hell to edit, because reading it once is fine, but it gets boring after a week and yet it still needed improvements...  
I hope you liked the result though.  
See you soon my lovelies!


	21. Bouncing Back

Hi everyone! I'm back with the new adventures of our two idiots in love (and really angry in Takumi's case).

Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 21: Bouncing Back**

How Takumi found the patience to wait until they all came back to the Trattoria before scolding Souma, he didn't know. However, the whole trip back beside him in the car felt incredibly long. He was boiling inside.

"I can't believe you decided to do such a thing without talking to us beforehand!" he finally exploded as soon as they stepped in the restaurant.

That felt better. Not quite enough, however.

"But it worked, right?" Souma defended himself.

"Still, you could have talked to us! It's still our place, it would have been nice to get ready for the negotiations!"

"Right. But I didn't expect them to involve the Trattoria in the deal."

"So what? You thought they'd do that for free?"

"No, of course not! But I was ready to face the consequences myself."

Takumi stopped at the words. He couldn't tell how he felt about that. Of course, he was happy that Souma would care so much about him. Them. Him?

But at the same time, this answer also made him angry. The more he thought about it, the more selfish those words sounded.

It made him angry _and_ sad, actually. Why did Souma always think that he had to solve everyone's problems by himself?

There was also fear, deep down. The blonde didn't know much about Mikhail, but he seemed quite determined to have Souma back. What if his condition was to make him come to Russia with him? Would he have left him behind so easily? Did he really think so little of Takumi to go away from him on a whim?

And here he was, back to anger and sadness.

"What if he asked you to leave France with him?" he asked in a softer tone.

Souma shrugged.

"Well, he didn't."

Did that mean that he was ready to accept it? Crap, he felt ready to cry now. That wasn't good. He was supposed to look fierce right now! Not … fragile, and lost, and afraid.

"Still, what if he had?" he insisted.

He sort of wished Souma would try to reassure him and just … put a hand on his shoulder, or hug him or something. That would have given him a reason to reject him and retreat to his kitchen in a dignified display of ire. But instead, the redhead just stood there, and his silence told him everything about how _ready_ he was to leave everything behind once again, Takumi included…

He turned around and walked away with a sigh of frustration.

"I hate you," he spat.

He didn't mean that. He meant quite the opposite, actually. But now wasn't the time.

"Also, don't be late for work this evening," he added from the kitchen.

That was better. A bit. Which didn't change anything about how he felt at the moment.

He ended up doing prep work to forget about the awful, salty and bitter taste on his tongue. It was like tears mixed with too much cinnamon. That one was new, he noticed as he cut some onions. And he didn't like it one bit.

.

Takumi was mad at him.

It took a while for Souma to realize that, and he felt a bit stupid for not noticing earlier. He thought that the blonde would calm down quickly, like he always did whenever they fought over something, but the other had spent the last two days avoiding him (or trying his best to, since they were working in the same room and had to communicate on a regular basis). The redhead assumed that he just needed some space for a few days, but that didn't seem to do any good and now, he had no idea what he should do. Had it been a cooking thing, he would have probably found a solution already. But here, he was completely at loss. Plus, since everything worked so well in the end, he really had no idea why the other would be so angry…

On the first day of their week with Mikhail and his men as the only customers, Takumi was still giving him the cold shoulder. However, they now had to talk to each other even more than usual, since the Russians seemed to enjoy the situation immensely and soon started asking for the most extravagant things they could imagine. The best dish on the menu mixed with the second best dish was a great example. They spent a few minutes trying to figure out which ones they would chose, and they ended up serving a kind of tagliatelle soup. The customer seemed to like it. Then came the Japanese version of spaghetti Bolognese (the Russians laughed a lot less when they got a nice plate of _napolitan_ ). Someone also asked for a gourmet rice salad, and another for a curry _omurice_. Souma was especially proud of this one.

All in all, the redhead was quite happy to be so busy. At least Takumi had to talk to him, and he sometimes seemed to forget that he was supposed to be mad at him. Souma kind of hoped that the other would forget it once and for all, but that never lasted more than the time they needed to cook one dish.

Among all of these weird orders Ishiwatari, Mikhail's chef, seemed as out of place as a steak in a vegan restaurant. Souma felt a bit sad for him, but Takumi had to make him work as an aide since he clearly wasn't in a position to help them create the Italian version of sushi or anything of the sort. Sure, that soon proved to be an excellent decision, given how efficient and helpful the other was in this position. However, it was clear that Mikhail's chef resented the situation, and the redhead couldn't blame him for that.

Once they served the last orders of the lunch service and cleaned the kitchen, Ishiwatari walked away without a word. Now that Souma thought about it, it seemed quite weird that he'd refuse to tell them his first name… But the redhead had enough on his hands already without wondering about this guy's motivations. Instead, he decided to take this opportunity to talk to Takumi, since apparently the situation wasn't going to get better on its own.

"Do you have any plans for now?" he asked casually.

"Not really," Takumi shrugged.

He walked to the door without looking at him, but Souma intercepted him. The blonde finally laid his eyes on him when he grabbed his arm to stop him, and he gave him a half-questioning, half-annoyed look.

Thinking back on it, the redhead could have asked if he could talk to him beforehand or something. But introductions had never really been his forte, so he quickly informed Megumi that he was borrowing Takumi for a moment and dragged him underground while the blonde protested. It was quite feeble though, and he still followed him without resistance, so Souma assumed that he was fine with it.

"Can you at least tell me why we're going underground all of a sudden?" Takumi finally asked once they crossed the secret passage.

"Don't know. You seem more at ease here, so it sounded like a good idea."

They remained silent until they reached Souma's old lair. There, he finally let go of the blonde's arm and turned to face him.

"What's wrong with you?" he asked.

"Don't tell me you don't even know that!" the other spat.

 _Fair enough,_ the redhead conceded as he replied:

"I mean, exactly. So that I know what I should apologize for."

Takumi looked at him with crossed arms and an annoyed (yet still adorable) pout.

"What do you think?" he asked grudgingly.

"I should have told you about my plan to talk to the Russians."

"Yes, you should have. But that's not it," the blonde replied grimly.

He sounded even angrier now, and Souma wondered if talking to him directly was such a good idea after all.

"Then what is it? It all went pretty well, everyone seemed satisfied with the deal, and you looked like you were having fun earlier."

"But it could have gone so wrong! Why do you keep ignoring how _wrong_ it could have gone?!"

"Because it didn't happen! So who cares about that?"

"I do!" Takumi exploded. "Why do you always act like what you do is never going to affect the ones around you? First you run away from Japan without thinking about how your family and friends would feel, and now you were just going to make a deal on _our_ behalf and pay for it _yourself_ , no matter what that meant! What if he asked you to leave, Souma? Would you have gone? Would you have even taken one second to think about how I would feel about it if you did?"

There were tears in his eyes. Souma didn't know how to react to that.

"I wouldn't have done it cheerfully, you know," he explained.

"But you would have. And that's the problem."

"I was ready to do it because that meant you were safe in the place you cherished the most. I thought that was the most important thing."

"Of course it's not! I mean … sure, I'd do anything to protect my restaurant. But … I would have felt terrible about that and…"

He seemed to hesitate for a second. Souma was ready to make fun of his failure to express himself, but thought that now wasn't the time. The blonde continued:

"And I'm sure we could have found another way that didn't imply that you had to leave, so it would have been a shame," he concluded with a look that showed how far those words were from what he first intended to say.

Ridiculous or not, Takumi looked so fragile at that moment that Souma finally understood what he meant.

"I think I get it now," he said. "And I'm sorry. I won't make these kind of decisions without talking to you first, from now on. I promise."

Takumi offered him a weak smile and tried to repress a sniffle.

"I guess that will do," he finally said, pulling him closer in a tight hug. "And don't you dare trying to leave again."

Surprised, Souma didn't move at first and the blonde took advantage of it, burying his face in his shoulder.

"Don't worry, I'm not planning to," he finally replied, hugging him back tightly. "I'm sure you'll get tired of me first, anyway."

"Don't be so sure of it," the other mumbled in his shoulder.

They remained like that for a few minutes, neither of them willing to move. To Souma's surprise, Takumi was the first to end it. He looked at him for a few seconds with an expression the redhead wasn't sure how to interpret. It felt a bit like a close examination. The result seemed to be satisfying, however, because the blonde pulled him closer for a heated kiss.

Souma smiled as he closed his eyes, savoring the moment. He loved it when Takumi was passionate like this. He cupped his cheek with one hand, wiping what was left of his tears, and used the other to pull him even closer. Now _that_ was better.

"Am I all forgiven now?" he asked with a smile.

"Maybe…"

Souma leaned down to put butterfly kisses on his neck.

"And now?" he whispered.

"You'll have to do better than that…"

He smiled. That was a challenge he was willing to take. And that called for drastic measures.

The redhead slowly went up to his ear and nibbled it playfully, gradually reaching the part he knew was the most sensitive. Takumi let out a small moan of pleasure, making him chuckle.

"And now?" he repeated softly.

"That's better," the blonde hummed, letting his hands travel under Souma's shirt.

He soon lifted them, taking the top of his cooking outfit with them, but the redhead stopped him midway. If his face had been spared by the accident, he knew that there were quite a few scars on the rest of his body.

"You don't care about your looks ninety percent of the time," Takumi pointed out. "How is this different?"

Souma could have replied that his skin was more intimate than just clothes. Or that his style could be fixed pretty easily if he chose to, but he couldn't get rid of the scars. But as he thought that, he realized that it was more of a habit than a real concern. Takumi was right. He really didn't care much. He uncovered his chest himself and was going to drop the piece of clothes carelessly on the ground when the blonde caught it.

"Is that how you take care of your cooking outfit?" he asked in a reproachful tone.

Souma rolled his eyes and dramatically put it on a kitchen counter. He then turned around to see that Takumi had followed him. Grinning, the redhead quickly grabbed his hips and lifted him to make him sit on it. He then resumed the kissing as Takumi's hands traveled all around his now exposed skin, sending shivers down his spine.

A part of Souma wanted to rip the blonde's uniform off. Another wanted to do it extra slowly and carefully as a revenge. But he soon figured that the first option would probably make the other mad at him again, and the latter would be more frustrating for him. He settled for a more normal way and got rid of it anyway.

Souma always felt amazed by how soft Takumi's skin was. Sure, it fitted perfectly with his delicate frame, but the redhead was still more used to his hands, which were surprisingly strong, rough, and covered with tiny, almost imperceptible scars he got from his years working in a kitchen. In comparison, his chest was smooth like a delicious peach, and it made him want to devour him whole.

Soon, however, he felt the blonde's arms getting covered with goose bumps and stopped his exploration to ask:

"Are you cold?"

"A bit…"

Souma stepped back and led the other to his old shack. It was slightly warmer inside, and more importantly, it was way more comfortable to check if Takumi was really smooth all over, now he had him pinned down to his bed. His flushed cheeks made his blue eyes shine even brighter. It distracted him for a moment, and the blonde took this opportunity to get up on one elbow and start sucking on a sensitive spot on Souma's neck, while his other hand softly traced the scars on his skin.

"Didn't you say something about not leaving marks?" Souma breathed.

"But you love it, don't you?" the other purred.

He pushed the blonde back on the bed, putting his forehead against his with a grin.

"You seem to enjoy it, too. Should I return the favor then?"

"Don't you dare," he snarled.

"That's what I thought," Souma replied before kissing him again.

.

Takumi woke up, naked and panicking. Where was he? And where were his clothes? And who was that person sleeping beside him? And what time was it even?!

It took him a few minutes to calm down and remember everything.

… _everything._

He covered his face and sighed. That was clearly not what he had planned. Not that he really had plans in the first place of course, but still, he absolutely didn't expect _that_ to happen when Souma led him here earlier. He was the one who started it, though… The blonde felt his cheeks burning even harder in his hands at the thought. He turned to the other and peeked at him through his fingers. The sight of his sleeping face soothed him and he smiled softly as he lowered his hands. Maybe it wasn't so bad after all…

He repressed a chuckle when he noticed the drool falling from the redhead's gape mouth and somehow found it adorable. Shaking his head, he retrieved his phone to find that it was time for him to get up and take a shower. He'd wake up Souma after that.

.

"Souma… Souma…"

The redhead woke up to Takumi softly calling his name. The sound reminded him of pleasant memories from just a few minutes ago (or hours?) and he couldn't repress a smile when he recalled the way the blonde whispered it earlier, as if he was planning to tell him something but forgot all about it halfway through.

"Souma, stop acting like a child," the other insisted. "I know you're awake."

The redhead let out a resigned sigh and slowly opened his eyes. The first thing he noticed was how close Takumi's face was to his.

"Were you going wake me up with a kiss?" he asked with an amused smile.

"Of course not!" the blonde huffed as he moved away.

He was totally planning to do it. Souma cursed internally. He knew he should have kept his eyes closed for a bit longer!

The second thing he noticed, now that his boyfriend was further away, was that he was fully clothed already. He pouted. How disappointing…

"Come on and get up," Takumi ordered. "We'll have to get ready for the evening service soon, and you won't have time for a shower if you don't hurry."

Now that the other mentioned it, Souma did feel a bit sticky. He clearly couldn't go back to work like that, and the idea of a hot shower was extremely appealing, even though the water he got underground wasn't exactly hot.

He got up with a grown of discontent and grabbed the clothes and the towel the blonde gave him. He then noticed the other's embarrassed look at his naked body and stepped closer to him with a mocking smile.

"Souma, what are you doing? The shower is the other way," Takumi remarked, drawing back with a blush.

"So I really won't get my wake up kiss?" he teased.

"After you shower."

"Now," he replied, stealing him a quick peck on the lips.

He retreated before the other could smack him, but still received a punch on the shoulder and left the shack with a soft chuckle.

.

The rest of the week was one of the funniest and the most exhausting of Takumi's life. It was full of weird challenges, and they tended to get harder each day, now that their customers knew what they were capable of. They had everything from "beef and banana: an unexpected marriage" to "main course fruit salad" and "meat cocktail". Their personal favorite was the "sweet raviolis", which immediately became their most popular dessert. Souma and Takumi each had their own version of the dish, Souma with "apple stuffed raviolis in chocolate sauce" and Takumi with "strawberry stuffed raviolis in matcha custard". It sounded a bit weird at first, but it was actually pretty great. Takumi wasn't sure about keeping them on the menu, however…

As for Ishiwatari, he became more and more open over the week. He first started asking a few questions, and ended up proposing his own version of the sweet raviolis: raviolis made with rice flour, filled with red bean paste and covered in a light, creamy sauce. That made his two "mentors" beam with pride, and new sweet ravioli recipes kept being created, including Megumi's version with spiced pumpkin, until they had enough to start a whole business just with them. According to Mikhail's chef, it could work pretty well if they first offered free samples to people in the streets.

By the end of the week, they ended up being quite an efficient team, and Takumi was almost sad that it had to end so soon. However, all the exhaustion hit him right after the Russians left for good, and he understood that he probably wouldn't have been able to do it much longer. In the end, going back to his usual routine felt way better than he expected.

Still, he couldn't help but smile when he remembered Mikhail's last words before leaving:

"We should do something like that next time we come to Paris."

He sure wouldn't mind having it as a yearly event, no matter what Norah thought about the reputation of the place if it became a well-known fact that it was the favorite restaurant of a bunch of Russian high-class criminals.

* * *

Okay so... to me it feels a bit like "Welcome to Fluffyland, do you want some extra sugar on that?", I don't know what happened (... but it suits the characters so well, I just can't go against it!).

I really tried to work on that though, so I hope it was fine (thank you Souma for being a heartless tease sometimes, you really saved my life here).

See you soon!


	22. They're Back

Hi everyone! (she said, although she knew there was no one) I'm back with my last full length chapter! There is still one after that, but it's more like a conclusion.

Anyway, enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 22: They're Back**

He was vengeance. He was night. He was … the Phantom!

Thus Souma thought one night, as he opened his closet to take out his old Phantom outfit. Despite what Mikhail assured them, he still wasn't sure Eizan would stay clear from the Trattoria. Erina would soon come back and he knew that they couldn't afford to have her attacked now. He had to make sure the businessman wouldn't dare plotting against them once and for all.

Also, although he didn't like to admit it, the redhead sort of missed making people eat his failed experiments… The residents from the _Étoile Polaire_ had unanimously passed a law forbidding it within the _Résidence_ – which was useless since he already made a promise to Alessandra anyway – he could no longer do it to random people, and he didn't have a reason to do it for the greater good these days.

That was boring.

.

Etsuya Eizan woke up to one of his worst nightmares: someone was in his room.

It wasn't as bad as learning that he'd lost all his money, though. Or seeing one of his perfect business plans fail. Or finding out that he was losing his teeth and somehow had a bright pink mullet. But still, it was ranked pretty high in his "worst nightmares list".

How did the stranger come in? And why was he wearing a mask? Could it be … the Phantom? Again?!

He opened his mouth to call for help, but before he could speak, it was stuffed with a piece of gyoza covered with chocolate enriched beef fond. Since it wasn't that bad, he bit it by reflex and that was when the nightmare truly began. The extra chewy dough was filled with caramelized pineapple, bell pepper, and extra thick custard. The juice burst into his mouth and he was overwhelmed by an explosion of overly sweet taste.

The flavor was too real to be a dream, but the vision he had of bathing in beef sauce with a pervert custard monster was a real nightmare.

"Don't target the Trattoria Aldini again," he thought he heard through his horrible delirium.

There was no one in the room when he woke up, and no trace of his night visitor except for a terrible aftertaste.

When he reflected back on it, later on, Etsuya couldn't be sure if this experience had been real or not. So he did the most reasonable thing he could: he decided that it was just a bad dream and gave up on his plans against the Trattoria. He already wanted to do that before, anyway. He had no intention to mess with the Russian mafia in the first place.

.

"I can't believe Megumi's leaving," Souma said for the fifth time already.

"Come on Souma, there's still time," Takumi replied. "She said she'd stay until we find a replacement, and that can take some time."

Still, he felt as shocked as the redhead. He always knew this day would come. They all knew that. And yet, none of them were prepared when Megumi announced earlier that day that she was considering accepting Inui's offer to work in her restaurant.

" _It's not that I don't like it here, of course!"_ she explained back then. _"It's quite the opposite, really. And I'll forever be grateful that you gave me a chance when I arrived. But… You know… I think I'd be more at ease in a Japanese restaurant. That's closer to what I'm used to and…"_

…and she clearly preferred Japanese cuisine, although she didn't dare admitting that in front of him. That was to be expected. They would all miss her, though.

"But still, I like cooking with her…" Souma insisted.

"I understand," Takumi agreed. "I mean, I've worked with her for longer than you did. Inui will be lucky to have her."

"But she seemed a bit creepy…"

"Who? Inui?"

"Have you seen how she behaves around Megumi? It's like she's going to eat her!"

"Isami was worried about that too…" the blonde mused. "But Megumi said she seemed serious this time. We'll have to trust her on that."

"If she bothers her too much, I still have my old Phantom outfit ready…" Souma remarked.

Takumi turned to him with a suspicious frown.

"You look like you enjoy the idea way too much…"

Souma gave him an innocent smile. The blonde didn't buy it. But still, he had to admit that Megumi deserved some kind of protection.

"Just don't put yourself in trouble," he sighed. "And let's hope for Megumi that you don't have to do that."

The redhead seemed slightly disappointed at the thought. It made Takumi smile.

"Don't be sad, you won't have time to get bored anyway," he declared as he stepped closer.

"I sure hope so," Souma breathed before leaning in for a kiss.

Takumi locked his fingers in the other's hair, responding happily. He could never get enough of these, and he couldn't believe that not so long ago, he rejected the redhead on this very spot. He was so stupid back then…

They only split when they heard the sound of the kitchen doors closing violently, making both of them turn around in a swift move.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to disturb you!" they heard Megumi apologize from outside the room.

Takumi felt mortified for a second. And had it been just a week ago, he wouldn't have been able to look at either of them in the eyes for at least a couple of days. But somehow, after … what happened during their last trip underground, he felt like it wasn't such a big deal.

"You can come in Megumi. We're sorry for startling you," Souma replied with an amused smile.

He then turned to the blonde and said in a lower tone:

"I thought she'd be used to it by now…"

Thinking back on it, it wasn't the first time she stumbled upon them kissing here. Takumi blushed at the thought. Maybe they should stop doing that in the kitchen. That clearly wasn't the best place for making out…

Megumi came in and as soon as she turned her back to them, the blonde caught Souma's arm and whispered anxiously:

"You don't think she's planning to leave because of that, do you?"

His boyfriend's laughter was the only answer.

.

Tonight was the night. And for real this time! Erina Nakiri was soon going to enter the restaurant and…

"Are you nervous?" Souma asked with an amused smile.

"Of course not!" Takumi exclaimed. "There's no way I can fail this."

Truer words had never been spoken. After the intense week he had two weeks ago, and more importantly, after his meeting with Souma and the resulting challenges, he had all the training he needed. And he didn't even need it in the first place. So everything was going to be fine.

Actually, the most stressed out people in the restaurant weren't in the kitchen – Megumi excepted. The waiting staff, however, seemed quite nervous earlier. And Isami had spent the last few days pampering him like an overprotective mother.

But tonight was the night, and everything would be perfectly fine.

.

The Erina Nakiri that entered the Trattoria that evening had nothing in common with the shaken, fragile looking one Satoshi met a few months ago.

Her posture told everything about her. She was standing tall and proud, looking right in front of her with a superior expression, and her whole stance was dripping confidence. Even though she was smaller than most of the staff, him included, Satoshi could understand why everyone looked so intimidated by her. However, the head waiter wasn't so easily impressed.

"Miss Nakiri, Miss Arato, welcome back to the Trattoria Aldini," he greeted them with his usual warm smile.

As he led them to their table, he noticed one thing that hadn't changed since the last time: Arato still looked like she would set the whole place on fire if she could. Not like Nakiri's expression was much better, but at least she seemed ready to give it a chance. It was up to them not to waste it and Satoshi, like the rest of the staff, was well aware that a bad review from her could destroy the restaurant more surely than any arson.

He left the newcomers with the menus, hoping that they would change their minds once they tried the food. That was usually what happened with grumpy customers, but Satoshi knew that these two would be especially hard to please, even without a negative first impression. And in this case, they were at a serious disadvantage, given what happened last time they came here. It was a miracle already that the critique was ready to give them a second chance.

For some reason, the head waiter was certain that Alice played a part in this.

.

Erina still wasn't sure what to think about this place. Hisako had done a lot to dissuade her to come back, but Alice could be quite persuasive when she wanted to. As for her, she was curious. The Trattoria Aldini didn't look like much, but she heard lots of good reviews about it, especially these days, and the people here really seemed to enjoy the food.

As often, she ordered several dishes that she shared with Hisako. She didn't always do it, since in some restaurants it was seen as very impolite, but the atmosphere here was quite relaxed so she knew they would understand.

Following a personal ritual, Erina let her friend eat first. She loved seeing her expression change when she ate something she liked. The way she closed her eyes and smiled always put her in a good mood. Plus, the critique trusted her judgment. Of course, she found flaws the other didn't notice most of the time, but if Hisako liked something, it meant that the dish had some interesting qualities.

Here, the contrast was stronger than ever. Hisako's face transformed completely, and her frown turned into the softest, most peaceful smile Erina had ever seen.

"The food is amazing, I'll have to give them that," she admitted.

The critique took her first bite, and all of her doubts about this place melted away.

From everything she tried that evening, two dishes especially caught her attention. The first one was the _ravioli nudi_. They were beautifully shaped, round and glistening in her plate like polished gems, and they melted in her mouth to reveal a wonderful panel of flavors. To her, it was like spending an evening in a cabaret, watching a fan dance skilfully done with spinach leaves. Somehow, the performer reminded her of Hisako…

The second one was the wild berries _semifreddo._ It tasted like walking in a peaceful forest on a warm day, enjoying the cool temperature under the trees and the dim light coming through the leaves. Wild animals were watching her from afar, unafraid, curious, and friendly. From around her, she heard birds singing, forming an improvised choir to sing _Strawberry Fields Forever._

She spent the whole meal talking and laughing with Hisako, who seemed way more open and relaxed than usual. Then, since there seemed to be less customers, she asked if she could meet the chef. There were a few things she wanted to discuss with him, and she was curious to know more about him.

She was surprised to see two people walking out of the kitchen. The blonde one was asking the other why he wanted to meet her so much, and Erina gasped as she got a better look at them. That redhead… It couldn't be…

"Hi Erina! Long time no see!" he greeted her with that cheerful smile that made her skin crawl every time.

"Souma…" she growled, all the pleasant feelings from her meal gone in an instant.

She thought she'd be more surprised to see him but somehow, her old aversion was stronger than that. She knew now that it was pretty irrational and mostly based on jealousy, but she couldn't help it. Even after all these years, she couldn't stand him…

"Weren't you supposed to be missing?" she asked dryly, wondering why she couldn't just ignore him.

"Oh, you heard about that? Well, I'm back now. Actually, I considered coming to greet you last time you came here, but then I thought it would be better not to."

"Wait, so he's the one who disappeared all those years ago?" Hisako asked.

"Are you aware that your father gave up on cooking after you disappeared? How can you be so calm and unrepentant about it?!" Erina continued, completely ignoring the question.

And here they were, arguing again. Or more precisely, she was arguing and the other didn't care, as always. It felt like fighting against wind, which made it all the more frustrating. She saw now how childish it was, but she couldn't help it.

After a while, she eventually started feeling a bit calmer and decided to stop. They had both grown up a lot, and it was probably time for her to show it. But still, he irked her to no end…

"But you're not the one who cooked tonight, are you?" she then asked, shivering at the idea that she actually _liked_ something from him.

"No, that's all Takumi's work," he replied, turning her attention to the blonde next to him.

Erina suddenly felt extremely silly for having ignored him this whole time, and that made her hate Souma even more. After all those years trying to forget about his existence, he still managed to get all of her attention the second he stepped in a room.

Determined to ignore him from now on, she attempted to send him back to the kitchen while she talked with the chef, which unfortunately failed. She still managed to tell the other what she wanted to, and was glad to see that he was as interesting as she imagined. Talking to him almost made up for the bad surprise that was Souma's presence in the same building as her. To think that man was in the kitchen this whole time, just a few feet from her…

That was repulsing.

.

Hisako didn't want the evening to end. She was having a great time with Erin- with Miss Nakiri and for once, she felt perfectly at ease. Maybe it was the food. Maybe it was the relaxed atmosphere of the place. Maybe she shouldn't have drunk so much wine…

It was probably the latter, actually, but it went so perfectly well with the food that she couldn't help it. She felt tipsy and though she did her best to hide it, she knew Erina had probably noticed already. … Miss Nakiri, she meant.

Thinking about it, the other drank more than her and seemed perfectly fine. She was so awesome. So perfect. So sparkling…

Yet, she seemed disturbed at the moment. Everything was so great only a few minutes ago, but she started frowning as soon as she saw Aldini's sous-chef and hadn't stopped since then.

"Is something the matter, Erina?"

Her boss looked up at her and seemed surprised for a second. Wait, did Hisako call her by her first name just now?

Miss Erina was smiling now, so it was probably fine. Maybe she'd just imagined that.

"It's nothing, Hisako. Don't worry. It's just … Souma…"

The frown was back, and Hisako immediately decided that she hated that man. How dared he ruin Erina's perfect evening with her?

"Did something happen between the two of you?" she asked.

"Not really…" her (beloved) boss sighed. "It's just… You remember Saiba? The … detective we met last time we came here?"

"Sure. You said you knew him from when you were younger."

"He's Souma's father."

"Oh…" she said, as if everything was clear now.

It wasn't. If anything, that only made the situation even harder to comprehend. Also, Hisako already understood that much. However, she decided to keep silent, hoping that Erina would give her some precisions. Fortunately, her prayers were heard.

"He came with him to the Nakiri residence a few times," she continued. "I could never stand him."

The critique almost spat the last words, still frowning.

However, it didn't last and her expression softened when she admitted:

"I guess I was just jealous that he had such a great father. I mean, you remember how _mine_ is…"

Hisako pursed her lips. She did have a brief encounter with Azami a few years ago. That didn't end well. He was by far the person she hated the most in this world, and if Erina hadn't told her to ignore him, the secretary would have personally hired a hitman to get rid of him. She actually felt like killing him herself, but that would have been a rash decision. She didn't know how to get rid of a body and would have probably been caught easily. That would have meant being separated from Erina while she was in prison, and nothing in the world was worth that risk.

"Maybe we could have been friends if I had tried being a bit nicer…" the other mused.

That would have made them childhood friends… Maybe they would have been more than that by now… Maybe even…

"Actually, no. I don't think we could have gotten along. He's too…"

Erina paused, trying to find an appropriate term.

"Well, you've seen him," she concluded. "He's always like that. I don't think I would have been able to stand it for long."

Hisako let out a sigh of relief.

"I think you're right," she agreed.

She paused for a second and then asked:

"By the way, what are you planning to do about their request?"

Erina sighed.

"I … guess I could give it a try. It might be interesting…"

"You don't have to do it if you don't want to. You have quite a busy schedule already, and these kinds of services are usually pretty expansive."

"Being the jury in a cooking faceoff?"

"Well, _your_ services are usually expansive."

"Right… But they seemed so serious about it…"

Thinking back on the way the two men started bickering about who was the best chef, Hisako had no choice but to agree on that. It had only started with a simple comment about how jealous Souma was, not being able to have Erina judge his own creations now she was a famous critique.

" _You always called all of my dishes disgusting when we were kids…" he had pouted._

" _That's because they were objectively not good," Erina had replied, starting a new argument._

Aldini seemed pretty surprised when he learned about their shared past. Almost as much as she was, actually. He also looked as jealous as her for a second, now that Hisako thought about it...

The blonde chef then declared that he would have won anyway, and that was the story of how Erina was probably going to be a judge in a cooking challenge between those two.

"I guess I will do it," she eventually declared. "I'm quite curious about Souma's growth as a chef now."

She kept silent for a moment, and Hisako patiently waited for the rest.

"It sounds like fun," Erina concluded.

* * *

I admit that I tried to fit lots of things here, I hope it worked well.

Also, I don't think anyone here cares anymore, but although this story will be over with the next chapter, I'm working on a sequel already. More about it in two weeks!


	23. The Final Showdown 2

Hi everyone! Sorry for being late, life was a bit hectic yesterday.  
But here I am with the final chapter! Finally! I can't believe it's been almost a year since I posted the first one...

Anyway, I'll tell you more about it and what's next later.  
For now, I hope you enjoy it!

* * *

 **Chapter 23: The Final Showdown (But For Real This Time)  
**

After everyone being so scared of him failing to please Erina Nakiri, Takumi couldn't believe that he actually had a chance to have her as a judge in a match against Souma. That kind of opportunity only happened once in a lifetime, and the fact that the world-class critique actually _accepted_ was still something he couldn't process. It was like a dream come true, except he never knew he had that dream before.

This time, the faceoff was set in the _Résidence_ , as Arato and she wanted to see it before they left. Of course, Alice didn't like the idea at first, since she wanted it to take place in her restaurant again. However, she stopped complaining once she got invited to watch it.

At the moment, most of the residents were waiting for Souma and Takumi in the living room, along with the Nakiris and the various people invited. Even Norah came along, and she hadn't stopped talking to Halima ever since she arrived. If Takumi didn't know how attached she was to the Trattoria, he'd be worried that the Lebanese chef might convince her to leave them and start their own business together or something…

Since the critique had planned to stay in Paris with her cousin until the end of the week, Souma and he had a couple of days to prepare. And despite seeing each other at work almost all the time, they barely had time to speak since both of them kept thinking about their future dish. As he was perfecting his, Takumi realized how weird it was not to have the redhead try his various prototypes. It had become such a natural thing for him these days…

The blonde couldn't really explain why, but it seemed that Souma was in each of his decisions regarding his final dish. He knew the real person to impress was Nakiri but somehow, whenever he tried a new idea, he kept wondering if the redhead would like it. It sounded stupid, but the blonde actually felt nervous about letting him taste it. In his opinion, his dish practically screamed _"I love you, Souma"_ …

Under these circumstances, letting someone else eat it might be weird, but Takumi felt that it probably wouldn't work like that on Nakiri. He wasn't even sure if it would be obvious for Souma in the first place, so… Plus, he knew it was objectively good.

He took a deep breath as he put it on a plate and added the final touches. He prepared a portion for the redhead as well, but he wasn't sure about letting him taste it yet. However, he knew that the other wouldn't leave him alone until he tried it, so resistance was futile anyway.

.

Erina was sincerely at loss. For the first time in her life, she was faced with a food-related problem her God Tongue couldn't solve.

Both dishes were amazing. Worse, they were _equally_ amazing. They were completely different, both on form and substance, but she couldn't determine a winner. There was no major mistake she could use for that and more importantly, they both had a soul of their own.

One was like a peaceful day outside, napping under a tree and hearing a soft breeze gently ruffling the leaves. It was warm, sweet, and she could almost feel the presence of a loved one beside her, enjoying this quiet moment with her. Through her half closed eyelids, she saw a clear blue sky over an endless green pasture. There was nothing troubling her and no reason to hurry. All that mattered was the soft grass under her bare feet, and the song of cicadas in the distance. It was the vision of a perfect summer day.

As for the other, it was more like an adventure. A whole adventure packed in a dish. She was walking in a forest deep in the mountains, looking for a lost temple and somehow learning the way from a bunch of friendly monkeys. There was action, and danger, but she had no fear. There was only thrill when she grabbed Hisako's hand to escape from mysterious caves, holding an ancient artifact.

Both were masterpieces, in their own way. And Erina loved them both equally. However, she knew that the others wouldn't accept such an answer. The two chefs were looking at her expectantly. Everyone in the room was looking at her, actually. There was so much tension right now. She couldn't disappoint them.

"Don't look at me like that!" she finally exclaimed with an irritated look. "Didn't you say something about trying each other's dish? Why don't you do it now?" she added for the two competitors.

The chefs exchanged a puzzled look, but it seemed to work on Souma and they soon stopped paying attention to her. For now…

Erina let out a sigh of relief. She knew it wouldn't last long, but at least that bought her a few more minutes. Hopefully, that would be enough to let her choose a winner…

.

Souma honestly couldn't tell if Takumi was nervous about Erina's decision, or about letting him try his dish. He didn't know why the critique insisted on making them do it _before_ giving them the results, but he decided to roll with it. He didn't doubt her impartiality of course, but he still felt that now wasn't a good time to upset her.

As always, Takumi's creation was beautiful. Souma never ceased being amazed by how much care the blonde put in the presentation. Not that he didn't do that himself of course, but the other was at a completely different level. Trying not to destroy its beauty completely, the redhead took his first bite.

A wonderful taste filled his mouth, and Souma understood everything. Victory didn't matter anymore, because in a single bite, he understood _everything._

This dish wasn't only delicious, it was eye opening. And more importantly, it was cooked for him, he was sure of it. Did his own creation convey the same feeling? The redhead wondered. Maybe not at that level but … it probably did. There was a bit of Takumi in everything he did these days.

When Souma looked up, he saw the other blushing. Maybe he was blushing too. That would be a first…

He smiled.

… Wait, did he really say victory didn't matter?

That was a lie.

Victory still mattered. A lot. Victory always mattered.

.

Miss Nakiri was giving her a distressed look, and Hisako had no idea how to help her. She didn't even know what the problem was, exactly. She could tell that her boss was trying to buy some time, but she had no idea why she was so scared of giving her judgment.

The competitors' attention went back to her. Hisako had never seen her looking so nervous.

"Oh, Erina, I'm glad to see you're here!" a voice came from the door.

She turned around, along with everyone in the room, to see Saiba coming in with a small plate in his hands.

"I made some soft caramels. Would you care for one?" he asked as he presented them to the critique, completely ignoring the tension in the air and the questioning looks he got after his much unexpected entrance.

Miss Nakiri looked at him like he just saved her from a bunch of hungry crocodiles.

She took one, and closed her eyes as she put it in her mouth to better savor it. She remained like that for a moment, until it finished melting. She was smiling. When she opened her eyes again, there was no trace of doubt left in them.

"I've made my decision," she declared.

The room fell silent. Both chefs were looking at her intently, more nervous than ever.

"Jouichirou Saiba wins."

.

For the few minutes that followed Erina's announcement, all hell went lose in the room. Jouichirou burst into laughter as he saw his son's face fall. In that short time, Takumi was clearly going through the five stages of grief. That was the best laugh he'd had in years.

He turned to Gin with a huge grin. The other was hiding his face, trying to look tired of his antics, but his friend knew he just didn't want anyone to see him chuckle.

Takumi and Souma were arguing loudly now. Hisako was trying to calm them down a bit, but they weren't paying any attention to her. Most of the audience was discussing the results with various degrees of surprise, amusement, and anger. As for Isami, he was laughing so hard that he was crying on the ground, desperately trying to catch his breath. Erina took advantage of the general confusion to quietly make her way to the door. Jouichirou couldn't tell if she was amused or horrified by the chaos she had just caused. She probably couldn't tell either…

As she walked past him, he heard her whisper:

"Thank you…"

He nodded.

.

If Erina managed to escape discretely with Hisako, the residents of the _Étoile Polaire_ were still deep in trouble. Souma and Takumi's argument escalated to the point where they started making everyone taste their dish to determine a winner. When they couldn't get a clear answer from the people in the room, they decided to hunt down the ones who didn't watch the faceoff.

Most of them ran away when they saw Souma running around the place with food.

The bravest reminded him of the new law before leaving as fast and far as they could.

However, according to most of the witnesses, the scarier of the two was actually Takumi. No one ever thought his angelic blue eyes could convey so much anger and determination. Like the sun, it was too intense to be looked at directly.

It took all of Fumio's authority to stop them.

And yet, they never received a proper reply as to who won this duel.

.

"I can't believe your father just won with sweets!" Takumi declared after they both calmed down a bit.

"I know! But I'm sure Erina wasn't impartial. She never is when my father's involved."

"My dish was obviously way better!"

"Are you kidding? Of course I won!"

And here they were, repeating their previous argument.

"Anyway, I'll win next time," the blonde eventually concluded.

"Hah, you wish," Souma replied.

There would be a next time, they were sure of it. Asking for a rematch was the first thing Takumi did once he processed the fact that neither of them had won, and although Nakiri didn't give them a proper answer, the blonde knew that there was no way she could refuse. Not after such an unfair decision.

They both fell silent after that. The heat was gone, and they both felt tired of bickering. Takumi decided it was time to leave, and the redhead walked him to the door of the _Résidence_. Before they parted ways, he grabbed him by the arm.

"By the way, Takumi…"

Souma pulled him closer, and as he put his lips against the blonde's ear, he whispered:

"I love you too."

* * *

So... Yeah, the end. But not really!  
As I said last time, I was going to write an epilogue, but then I kept having ideas about what happened next and... Well, it's now a proper sequel. It's called "Finding Souma" and I'll let you guess what it's all about! (super hard, I know)

However, I won't post it yet. I'm currently working on something in French which I'll post here soon, and then I'll go back to it. Don't expect it until at least June.

Anyway, this has been a real adventure and I'm glad you've followed me all the way here. It was my fist time writing in English so I hope it didn't sound too foreign or anything. A big thank you to everyone who supported me through this, and if you haven't already... well it's never too late to tell me what you think!

À la prochaine mes petits croissants ! Honhonhon !


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